1.31.2013

Montreal Home Builders Swing Through Portland after Green Building Show in Vegas

Last week First Stop hosted a delegation comprised of owners of home building companies working in Canada--mostly in Québec province.They are members of Qualité Habitation, an accreditation program working to assure the quality construction of the new homes. Its participants are accredited by Qualité Habitation as premier home builders After attending the International Builders' Show in Las Vegas, these delegates visited Portland to see green building ideas in action. They came looking for new ideas with residential projects and were also curious about home builder certification programs in Oregon.

During their time here, they toured high-end, high-density development at the South Waterfront, where they got a behind the scenes look at the Mirabella's strategies for achieving LEED Platinum. They also met for lunch with Honorary Consul of Canada, James M. Baumgartner, who shared his experiences furthering trade, educational and political relationships between Oregon and Canada. To wrap things up, the Canadians trekked to NE Portland for visits to some premier residential projects including Sabin Green and Cully Grove co-housing projects with developer Eli Spivak of Orange Splot Development and architect Mark Lakeman of Communitecture as well as the Bob and Julie Granger's amazing green residence.

Feedback from their time here?

1.23.2013

First Stop Portland: The Professors' Professor

Last week, First Stop Portland hosted a delegation of Fulbright Scholars studying in Oregon this year. Their
three-day visit to Portland served as the “urban” component of a three-part enrichment program sponsored by Oregon State University, the World Affairs Council of Oregon, and Portland StateUniversity to help the visiting scholars develop a sense of the place they'd be spending their year.

So what did these scholars from a range of disciplines (including law, community health, public administration, education, forestry) and homelands (including Tunisia, Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and Thailand), think about Portland after learning about it from PSU faculty and touring it from Marquam Hill to Expo Center?

When asked what most surprised them about their time in Portland, the Fulbright Scholars replied: