The Karl Miller Business Center at Portland State University is embedded in the urban fabric of the city. Its footprint is one urban block where one side is a full floor higher than the other. The site design uses that natural topography to move stormwater through a river rock channel from the high side of the building to the low side where it enters into a multiple stormwater planter system. Strong collaboration between architecture and landscape created an integrated design where outdoor plazas and interior spaces are unified through consistent patterns, materials, and visual porosity. Multiple level terraces that slide in and out from each other allow for that porosity and connection on a vertical plane.  

Client: Portland State University

Team: Behnisch Architekten, CannonDesign (previously SRG), Mayer/Reed

Status: Completed with Mayer/Reed

Awards: American Society of Landscape Architects, Oregon Chapter, Honor Award, General Design (2018)

Credits: Images courtesy of Bruce Forster and Mayer/Reed