Ladd Carriage House

• Development cost: $2.17 million
• Completion date: May, 2009
• VIEW PHOTO GALLERY

This renovation of one of Portland’s most iconic and beloved buildings almost did not happen.

Opus Northwest teamed with First Christian Church to redevelop the church-owned block at SW Broadway and Columbia. Redevelopment of the block–where the Carriage House stood for more than 124 years– included construction of the 23-story Ladd Tower Apartments and four-story underground parking garage. Opus committed to the challenge of saving the Carriage House and hired Northwest Structural Moving to lift the building off its foundation and park it two and a half blocks away during construction of the tower and garage. The Carriage House was returned to its original site on October 18, 2008 and positioned on a new foundation above the parking garage. See videos of its relocation and its return to its original site.

Opus–nationally known for its commercial development of new construction–turned to Venerable Development for specialized historic redevelopment of the Carriage House. Opus hired Venerable as the developer, historic preservation consultant and marketing agent for the Carriage House. Other members of the development team included Carleton Hart Architecture, Bremik Construction and TM Rippey Consulting Engineers.

Cost of the preservation and redevelopment of the Ladd Carriage House shell and core was $2.17 million not including the moving costs and other predevelopment costs incurred by Opus NW.

The preservation and redevelopment of the Carriage House was a major accomplishment. The following was accomplished:

• 50% of the windows were originals and were saved. The other half were replaced with replicas
• Extensive hand carpentry was done to repair/replace the intricate designs as the structure had a conglomeration of detail and artistic variety
• The roof was replaced and dry rotted wood members and siding were replaced
• Removed extensive exterior paint. Selected a new paint scheme that highlights the architectural variety, yet retains the “stable-like feel”
• All new systems were added including electrical, fire sprinklers and elevator
• Removed second floor that had been added and restored the original height of the hay loft
• Restored original doors and crafted new doors to match, including the distinctive hayloft doors and carriage doors on the south side.

Ladd Carriage House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places for over 25 years, but when it was moved from its original site to build the tower and garage, the Carriage House was de-listed from the National Register. Venerable reapplied and the historic property is expected to be listed again in late 2009, opening doors for access to financial incentives including federal historic tax credits.

The Carriage House design is a hybrid style–a cross between the Stick Style and Queen Anne Victorian. The building was constructed in 1883 by William Sargent Ladd (1826-1893) who was Portland’s fourth mayor and one of its leading businessman, civic leaders and philanthropists. It is the last remaining building associated with Ladd. He had the Carriage House built directly across SW Broadway from his grand residence, which was demolished and replaced with the Oregonian Building. The Carriage House cost about $12,000 at the time and was called an “expensive stable” in an editorial written when the building was completed.

Over the years, the Ladd Carriage House has been used for a variety of purposes. The first major remodel was in 1926 after it was sold by the Ladd Family. Next it was remodeled in 1972.