Alta Peak sits at the convergence of four distinct Portland districts: Goose Hollow, Northwest, The Pearl, and Downtown. It's an ideal place for Portland's young professionals in search of a vibrant urban living experience, with Providence Park and the MAX light rail station just steps away. The 8-story building has an ageless quality that goes beyond the expectations of modern, contextual architecture. With tall bay windows and warm brick cladding, it reaches back to a time when brick courtyard apartment buildings were the standard for urban living. But as three distinct masses with a unique window rhythm, it leaves behind a basic architectural grid. Burnside Street is a major thoroughfare for the city that borders the North side of the development. With thoughtful programming and design, we created an active and inviting ground floor for pedestrians and a private entry experience for residents of Alta Peak. Setbacks, sidewalks with plantings, and inviting retail space welcomes the surrounding neighborhood in from each side of the building. Dark brick gives the building its overall solidarity against the traffic-heavy Burnside St. and steel canopies protect passerby from rain. The building's mass scales down at Alder Street, where traffic is slower and less frequent. A south-facing courtyard also creates a softer, inviting edge, efficiently doubling as a storm water retention system. Residents enter their apartments here, where they also have easy access to the leasing office and ground-floor fitness center. A severe, 13-ft slope pushed the boundaries of wood frame, brick-clad design. With a fair amount of technical ingenuity, we turned the challenge into an advantage and created two different garages, with loading on one side and the main garage on the other, helping to maximize the residential units above. An amenity space on the top floor is an indoor/outdoor retreat for residents to come together. Its south-facing orientation offers 180-degree views of the surrounding city. A reflective finish at the top of the amenity roof minimizes heat absorption. Underneath, a wood soffit will cast a warm glow from the crown of the building, a beacon of light at the center of four converging city districts.

The resident entry of Alta Peak is an experience of retreat. The hum of Burnside traffic fades away, and through an entry on Alder Street, a high-end lobby welcomes residents home. Warm, locally sourced oak on level two and walnut on level eight defines the large spaces, a natural balance to the urban landscape outside. Movement and access to natural space are critical contributors to human health and wellbeing. Interiors at Alta Peak are inspired by this common denominator. A public fitness center on the ground floor sets the tone, with a floor-to-ceiling wall graphic that evokes the motivation we feel when we see the mountains of the Pacific Northwest. A refined pallet of warm oak, rich blackened steel, and cool concrete tones are carried throughout the residential spaces. At each level entry, a wood-cut wall paneling reinforces the expressions of movement and the organic forms of the region. Inside each unit are more inspiring, urban quality finishes. From full-tile backslashes and slate appliances to the dark wood-like cabinetry, every material was crafted and sourced locally from the Pacific Northwest. Recalling Portland’s historic courtyard apartment buildings, tall bay windows flood each unit with daylight. An 8th-floor amenity deck is the apex of the home’s indoor/outdoor connection. The lounge is the perfect place for Super Bowl watch parties and film screenings with friends. But with 180-degree views of the city, residents and their guests might have their eyes on the bustling urban scene surrounding them, or perhaps Mount Hood beyond.