The North Lombard TC as Transit-Oriented Development

[This is a ported version of the ArcGis storymap article I posted on June 8, 2026, possibly still accessible here.]

Transit Oriented Development?

At my North Lombard Transit Center?

I recently had the opportunity to conduct a short accessibility audit of the North Lombard Transit Center, and in my careful assessment of the space I began to finally articulate a feeling, long-held but difficult to express. This space is currently disastrous for human joy and health, but has an immense amount of potential to do the exact opposite. In this short report, I'll outline some of the ways the current built environment compromises the important societal goals of equity, sustainability, safety, and beauty, in opposition to the policy goals of the Portland Comprehensive Plan, and what relatively easy steps could be taken to enable this space becomes a beacon of opportunity for the rest of Portland.

In short, with a targeted redevelopment effort on the lots around the Transit Center and a reconfiguration of the street plans for North Lombard St and North Interstate Ave, this area could be deeply transformed. It could go from a hostile and dangerous space to pass through into a place where people live, congregate, and are drawn towards. This proposal involves improving the lives of those who use transit most often and feel the hostility of this space to an outsized extent as well as creating a more sustainable, healthier, and nature-forward built environment. Even just minor attention would transform the space: it is starving for love.

The North Lombard Transit Center (circled in red) and the two west-side blocks on Interstate Ave directly to the south. The large plots owned by Kaiser Permanente are highlighted in blue. The yellow triangles mark the same intersection to show how the two maps overlap. The green arrow marks where I walked, and the pink dots identify the locations of each of the videos, chronologically from the south as I went north.

The Current Situation

The Kaiser Permanente Office and the large southern parking lot

The current Kaiser Permanente office at the corner of N Greenwich and N Interstate is in an extremely valuable location for future residential development. I've lived in the area around 8 months and the building has been seemingly empty that entire time. Both of its designated parking lots are used only by skaters and occasionally someone spending the night in a tent or an RV. This southern parking lot is labelled "Patient Parking." I have never seen evidence of a patient parking in that lot since I moved into the area.

The Kaiser Permanente office's smaller northern parking lot

The northern parking lot is labelled for employee use, but it hosts even fewer people than the southern lot. It is also directly adjacent to the southbound Yellow MAX stop, further magnifying this area's massive development potential and current extreme misuse. Decoration on the side of the Kaiser building is non-existent, in opposition to Portland Comprehensive Plan (PCP) Policy 4.6 (Street orientation). The young trees next to the roadway don't sufficiently protect pedestrians and other non-auto travelers from the waves of wind, noise, and occasionally debris created by oncoming traffic. All pieces of the on-foot experience shout "keep moving, or else."

An automated watchtower standing guard over an empty parking lot

The lot to the north of the northern Kaiser lot is supposedly "for lease," but it's clear that either the math hasn't worked out to justify its sale or there is a severe lack of creativity and urgency towards getting this space developed. It was evidently last used as a Subway and has sat vacant since at least 2023, slowly deteriorating since. The solar-powered watchtower at the corner of the lot is extremely hostile, and the message it screams is highlighted in the fourth video. (Audible in the original Storymap post.) How in the world could this model of complacent business make financial sense? It shouldn't - if it does, then local policy should change to address that.

Standing by the "beg button," the aforementioned watchtower's terrifying command

This space is implicitly and explicitly opposed to the presence of anyone not in a car or anyone hoping to spend any extended amount of time. The massive stroads and huge, unused parking lots are choking the soil while providing no output but poisonous runoff. Open soil is scarce and healthy large trees are even less common. Animals are rare but present, occasionally visible skittering across the pavement once it gets dark or as a quickly-obliterated smear. The unending whirr of car traffic can be heard late into the night from many blocks away, and yet the location's use as a transit center forces many non-drivers to brave the dangers to merely go about their lives. This is unnecessary and unacceptable. We can and should do something about it.

Interventions

There are two main interventions that I would suggest that the city, various agencies, and interested developers begin to investigate. The first of these would be the creation of several very high density mixed-use developments on the gas station lot on the southwest corner of Interstate and Lombard, the monitored "for lease" lot, and the two lots owned by Kaiser. These lots together occupy more than 10,000 square feet of highly valuable, transit-adjacent land. It's a shock and a shame that this area isn't already host to several 6+ story apartment buildings with first floor retail. The presence of the Fred Meyer across the street and the easy access to downtown via the Yellow MAX essentially guarantees that this location would attract crowds of people, many willing to pay significant sums. The city might be further able to support development here by offering System Development Charge (SDC) waivers, or perhaps even by buying the land outright to help develop the city's stock of highly affordable social housing.

The four lots noted here are all already zoned for Commercial Mixed Use (CM3). As described in Portland's zoning code, "The CM3 zone is a large-scale, commercial mixed-use zone intended for sites close to the Central City, in high-capacity transit station areas or town centers, and on civic corridors. The zone allows a wide range and mix of commercial and residential uses, as well as employment uses that have limited impacts. The scale of development is intended to be larger than what is allowed in lower intensity commercial / mixed-use and residential zones." - This is a prime location for this zoning to be utilized to its fullest conceivable extent. The current Kaiser office building could be transformed into housing at relatively low cost, providing near-immediate housing in this prime area without needing a large investment. The creation of more housing at any price range would help alleviate our current housing crisis via "up-filtering." No matter if it be by private developers or social housing developers, through interior replacement or full construction, we would do well to build, build, build!

A 3d Google Maps view of the discussed area, with the parking lots and the gas station outlined in orange. The Kaiser office building is not outlined. Cross-sections of Interstate and Lombard are marked in blue. There is a white arrow marking North. The Fred Meyer and its parking lot is in the foreground.

The second intervention suggested for this area is a complete overhaul of the street plan. As it stands right now, the "Transit Center" component of this intersection is deeply de-prioritized to minimize friction felt by drivers passing through, despite the PCP's Policy 4.5 (Pedestrian-oriented design). To enable such a seamless experience for drivers, the safety of those outside of cars is largely unconsidered. When it is considered, it is given little more than lip-service in the form of pedestrian signaling, curb-cuts, and mostly-intact truncated domes to mark crosswalks. We need to rebuild this intersection more fundamentally if we want to adhere to the broad vision of urban reinvention demanded in the PCP, specifically Policies 3.49 (Design great places) and 4.21 (Street Environment).

Below are proposed changes to N Interstate Ave and N Lombard St where they intersect. It should be noted that N Lombard St is technically an Oregon State highway, and so largely falls under ODOT's jurisdiction. This section of N Interstate Ave is a minor arterial, so the state has less control. This could make remodeling the layouts somewhat legally challenging. It remains worth it. The sections of the thoroughfares that are documented and then reimagined are circled in blue on the preceding 3d map of the area. Several factors were considered in the construction of these plans and special attention was paid to the goals outlined in PCP policies 4.23 (Design for pedestrian and bicycle access) and 3.55 (Transit station area safety). Those outside of cars should be the priority, both for comfort and for safety. Increased safety and comfort for those in cars is also likely to follow, as demonstrated time and time again in urban settings around the world. (Vision Zero report)

North Lombard Street (facing east), before and after remodeling

These proposed changes are dramatic in several ways, but each choice is grounded in well-studied best practice for pedestrian infrastructure as well as policies drawn from the PCP. The removal of all but one lane in each direction and a turning lane when helpful is an instance of a well-studied intervention called a "road diet," which is extremely effective at reducing speeds, and thus danger. Two-way traffic-separated bike lanes are one of the best interventions for bicycle safety in practice today. Street trees are invaluable in a rapidly-heating climate, and are encouraged throughout the PCP, but especially in policy 3.48 (Integrated land use and mobility). This policy also supports the maintenance of a distinctive character in civic corridors, like this area. It encourages doing this while building dense housing and employment integrated with high-quality transit service, like that which is encouraged by the first intervention in this report and depicted in the above and below street plans.

Transit access is improved in the proposed street plans via several methods, primarily reducing crossing distance, separating modes, reducing lane count, and creating human-scale barriers & shade with trees. In addition, the consolidation of both-direction transit stops helps travelers transfer between modes and lines with more confidence, in line with policy 9.19 (Pedestrian safety and accessibility). The consolidation also reduces instances of cars sharing space with bicyclists and pedestrians, which definitionally reduces the spaces that enable life-altering crashes. These improvement to safety, accessibility, and beauty are strongly supported by PCP policy 3.54 (Community connections). I hope it can also be noted the absurd quantity of space we currently dedicate to drivers over people using any other mode. The current street plan of N Lombard St is clearly designed against the well-being of all people. The proposed alterations make some sorely-needed adjustments to the space.

North Interstate Ave (facing north), before and after remodeling

Meta-Analysis of the Report

The two interventions outlined above are necessarily limited in their scope. This report as a whole also has unavoidable limitations. As a student of the PSU Toulan School of Urban Studies, I am subject to the boundaries of my context. As I go through my time as an Urban Planner, in school and beyond, I will deepen and broaden my understanding. I am also subject to my personal history and reality. I am a white, nominally-cis, articulate, able-bodied, transit-dependent, young man. This report necessarily comes from my limited knowledge and experience, and I depend and will continue to depend on others to keep me aware of my mistakes. I stand with my fellow dreamers to continue to work on the ground as well as create proposals that make our city as wonderful as possible.

For this report to be considered a truly rigorously conducted analysis with solidly valid and reliable assessments, it could meaningfully benefit from several changes, all of which would require more time and effort. While community engagement is vital and should be conducted for a project of this magnitude, the usual process favors entrenched interests, including groups like Kaiser Permanente, gas station owners, and drivers generally. For community engagement to reap meaningful rewards, the relative importance of input should be weighted towards transit users, pedestrians, and those who live nearby and spend time in the space often. The needs and wants of future residents should also be noted in any consultation with the broader public, perhaps through the presence of those who live in similar contexts in other places around the city. Like any project, there should be careful analysis of the proposal considering (pecuniary and non-pecuniary) costs, seasonal and weather conditions, public awareness, equity, sustainability, and a reasonable set of precedents.

Closing Notes and Suggestions

How can the area around the North Lombard Transit Center be best utilized to support the needs of a changing city? We can create housing, reduce noise, increase tree canopy and permeable surfaces, increase safety for everyone, and massively increase the general appeal of the space. We can indeed do all of this simultaneously. It is our responsibility to be thoughtful stewards of our world, acting carefully but powerfully to bring our relationships with each other and with the land on which we reside into a state of mutual understanding and respect.

The current North Lombard Transit Center is not only a prime example of auto-oriented inefficiency, it also is an actively hostile spot for people traveling by any mode, or even just existing. It is fundamentally inequitable, in the prioritization of drivers' well-being over the well-being of all others. In bringing our social relationships into balance, we should remember that those outside of cars deserve as much dignity and respect in policy and in pavement as those inside of cars. We should also keep in mind that the sort of intervention described in this report is a "middle-of-the-road" approach, which still participates in the social and economic subsidization of the automobile, but does materially pave the way for a future free from car dependence.

These proposed interventions would center human life over a belief in an ultimately false convenience. However, they would not compromise the ability to get around for those who truly have no choice but to use a car or truck for their work or their life. In alignment with policy 9.2.b (Street Policy Classifications), this report affirms the necessity and feasibility of giving priority to "pedestrian access in areas where high levels of pedestrian activity exist or are planned." It could not be reasonably argued that the North Lombard Transit center doesn't already have a high level of pedestrian activity, despite the structural violence that makes such activity difficult or outright dangerous. Imagine what beauty and wonder could be created in this place if those barriers were removed and people had the opportunity to painlessly inhabit such a lovely space.

It has been a joy to work on this report, and I look forward to continuing conversations about how to better the experience of non-drivers in this location as well as all around Portland. I love this city and I look forward to doing this sort of work in this city for the rest of my life.

This is the work!

Sources

These resources were invaluable in the creation of this report. Follow the links to learn more about some of the materials discussed here.

Portland Comprehensive Plan

——— Portland.gov

Street Layout Creation Tool

——— Streetmix

Portland Zoning

——— Portland Maps

Upfiltering

——— Article on upfiltering

The Subway that was gone in 2023

——— Google Maps

Drivers are safer when pedestrians are prioritized

——— Vision Zero Report

Some Pedestrian-oriented development Best Practices

——— Federal Highway Administration

Lombard and Interstate Jurisdictions

——— ODOT Resources