(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)
A key piece of the decades-long vision for the Lloyd District came into focus this morning when the Lloyd Cycle Station – and its 600 secure bike parking spaces – opened to the public.
We shared the lowdown on the the Cycle Station earlier this month and today I attended the grand opening. To refresh your memory this facility is part of the Hassalo on Eighth development that has arisen on a former surface parking lot on the 700 block of NE Multnomah. There are three new buildings in this development and they all strongly encourage a low-car lifestyle among their tenants. Along with an adjacent MAX light rail line and one of Portland’s best protected bike lanes (on NE Multnomah), Hassalo residents now have their choice of 1,200 bike parking spaces. Compare that to just 328 auto parking spaces and you can see why car ownership is only optional here.
the company that owns and manages Hassalo on Eighth.
(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)
Before the ribbon was cut this morning, American Assets Trust Vice President Wade Lange said, “Our architects took a code requirement [for bike parking] and turned it into infrastructure that’s unparalleled in North America.”
Lange, whose company owns and manages the Hassalo project (and many other buildings in the district), said he hopes everyone who works, lives, or bikes in the Lloyd will take advantage of the new Cycle Station. It’s open to members 24-hours a day and it offers free self-service bike repair, showers (for you and your bike!), locker rooms, towel service, valet (during business hours), a snack vending machine, and even a small lounge with chairs and a television.
Portland Bureau of Transportation Director Leah Treat also spoke at the event. She said the Cycle Station reminds her of similar facilities in Copenhagen and other world-class biking cities in Europe. “We’re going through rapid growth in Portland, and people want to move here for our cycling infrastructure… This development will play a huge role in that culture shift,” she said. Treat also added that this type of bike parking is complementary to the growth in cycling that will come with the launch of bike share next month and new cycle tracks she plans to build throughout the city.
For U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer, being on hand at this morning’s opening was a chance to reflect on the past. As a Portland city commissioner in the 1990s, Blumenauer recalled then Mayor Bud Clark asking him, “What are we going to do with the Lloyd District?” “A few years ago this was several acres of concrete,” Blumenauer said today. The Hassalo project and the Lloyd Cycle Station, he added, “are emblematic of how we want to develop as a community.” Blumenauer said getting more people to use bicycles is a “secret weapon” to reduce congestion and to make housing more affordable.
And judging by the quality of the Cycle Station it shouldn’t take too much arm-twisting to encourage bike use.
Once you roll onto the plaza on the ground floor you are whisked underground by a glass elevator. A ramp then leads you into the entrance of the Cycle Station where glass sliding doors swoosh open automatically. You can either roll directly into the bike racks or swing by the repair station to tighten a few bolts. A foot-activated air pump is also available for use. If you need to catch up on the news and chill after or before your ride, you can plop down into a big chair, put your feet up and watch some TV.
If you don’t want to hassle with anything, a valet parking attendant will meet you in the lobby upstairs and hand you a tag for your bike that you can pick up after your visit.
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Before I left I ran into Lange again. I ribbed him about the Go By Bike comparison. There are a lot of transportation options in the Lloyd District I joked, but South Waterfront also has the aerial tram so they have the Lloyd beat. “Well,” Lange quickly replied, “We’re going to get that bridge on 7th over I-84. The city wants to make 7th Avenue a bike street — just imagine going through into the central eastside. It’ll be huge!”
A grand vision of the Lloyd District as the most people-friendly, low-car zone in the entire city is alive and well.
Disclaimer: Hassalo on Eighth is a BikePortland advertiser.
— Jonathan Maus, (503) 706-8804 – jonathan@bikeportland.org
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jesus, that’s amazing
More places need a bike wash station! Wish my complex had one.
I got to check it out yesterday. A really cush joint. Their bike wash hoses with the squeeze lever have really high water pressure, and I suggested they lower the pressure considerably so that people aren’t unwittingly forcing grit in-between moving parts (thanks, Tori Bortman for the knowledge!).
happy to have some competition!
I just wanted to say that I biked over to the OHSU food carts for the first time and was blown away by the bike presence down there. I couldn’t find a place to secure my longtail and one of your attendants came to me, explained the system and parked my bike. He was polite and professional, and complimented my first-gen Xtracycle. You have an awesome thing going!
The doors open like Star Trek, not Star Wars.
I worked for a company that had indoor bike storage, repair area, and wash area. Lockers and showers as well They also paid you based on how many miles you rode to work, that money was credited to a gift card that could be used in the cafe, or banked for employee purchase of goods. They also pushed car pooling, reserving all close in parking spaces for car pools. Purchased all green power, as well as putting solar panels on the roof. Also owned a few acres where they built some amazing single track 5 minutes ride from the office.
Gotta say lloyd cycle station ranks up there with some of the best.
Name names!! Updating my CV as we speak….
Those mid west winters aren’t that much fun.
On another green note, they started using recycled materials in as much of their product packaging as possible.
Overall very socially responsible, even though they didn’t do much to honk their own horn about it.
Hah, I know someone was going to point this out. Jonathan, you clearly need to attend the Star Wars vs. Star Trek ride more often! 😉
Have to say i’m pretty discouraged by this glaring error Jonathan. While it would be hard to mispresent something as wrongly as the Oregonian this blunder comes close. Here is a Star Trek door https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVtB2Lrd1vg and here is a door from star wars https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlyPGKnCg_U
Damn. Called out.
“The doors open like Star Trek, not Star Wars.”
I was just going to say that… maybe somebody needs to dress as an automated door for the Star Trek vs Star Wars ride during Pedalpalooza…
I’ve been using it for a month. It is indeed super sweet.
Looks like a nice facility.
So, what’s nearby? I’ll use it if there’s an excuse (food, coffee, etc).
Green Zebra!
There are dentists on the 8th floor.
I don’t have a Çêrvélø.
Well that went over my head.
The joke is that all cycling dentists ride Cervelos. Totally oblique.
Ah. But you don’t have to ride a Cervelo to visit a dentist.
My dentist is on the 8th floor there (TMI) and every 6 months he asks me about my ride to work, and what route he should take to ride in. I don’t think he’s taken the plunge yet, but maybe the cycle station will change his mind.
I wondered as well.. obviously the mall is nearby… but what else… then I realized I didn’t know exactly where it was at…
700 NE Multnomah Street
https://goo.gl/maps/cqBu9aZ96v72
I never go by there during weekday business hours when the neighborhood is actually alive… sadly, I can’t think of one business in the area other than the corporate ones on Grand/MLK…
love the sprockets embedded in the counters… reminds me of the bar at Vita Cafe…
will the lack of roll-up access be a problem? I wonder if the elevator will be perceived as a barrier that the tram’s bike valet doesn’t have
the lack of roll of access is a huge problem for me. unless bike parking outside is unavailable i can’t see myself ever using this facility (even out of curiosity).
Just roll down the parking ramp to P1 and find the little lamp to the cycle station on the far end of the garage.
However, that little ramp has a pretty tight 180. I don’t know how short a bike needs to be to cut that corner.
If you do roll-up to visit one of the nearby businesses, I believe the bike valet will take your bike at the top of the elevator in the plaza, and park it for you — for FREEEEE (for now).
Its great to see the new housing development in Lloyd with such a bike focus. And, its on the MAX line (Red, Blue & Green), but remember that station opened in 1986! What opened much more recently is the eastside Streetcar line on 7th (A Line) with a stop right at the front door of Hassalo on 8th. The protected bike lanes on 7th were upgraded as part of the Streetcar project and soon, we hope, will be extended across I-84 on the “Blumenauer Bike/Ped Bridge!”
Congrats! to the American Assets Trust and the Lloyd District TMA [and the City] on a job well done…the bar has been raised for the US!! (I will have to come in for a visit.)
Looks like I see the free-standing wall racks and the cool foot pump made by Urban Racks too…
Todd Boulanger
VP of Operations and Design
Bikestation
360-852-9177
PS. …someone remind me…I think this project created more bike parking spaces than there were car parking spaces in the old mid-century parking garage and lot that used to be on site.
We have racks exactly like this in the bike cage at my office building, and I’ve found that it is very rare that two adjacent hooks (one high, one low) can ever be used simultaneously without bumping shifters, especially if one bike has wide flat bars. These racks need a second horizontal bar about a foot above the other one. Bikes hung on the lower racks rest their rear tires on the existing bar, keeping them vertical; but bikes hung on the upper hooks swing through the open space so their handlebars pivot far enough downward to interfere with the handlebars on an adjacent bike. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you view it), our racks are never over half full, so there is no need to use adjacent hooks. Has anyone noticed this problem in this facility?
Currently it’s 97% empty, so I haven’t noticed. The next closest bike to mine is about 30 racks over.
What the “very nice plaza” looked 5 years ago, from almost the same angle:
https://goo.gl/maps/FeSJ7jeVZC12
Is the bike parking free or fee-based? If I were running into the Lloyd Center for an hour, would this be a good place to park? I’m assuming valet-service means tipping.
Not against that, more curious.
This is such a neat idea! I love the idea of a bike wash station!!!
Is all the bike storage vertical? Not everyone can lift their bikes up that high. What about space for bikes with long wheelbases? Is there storage for cargo bikes and bakfietsen, as well?
I have the same question, and an additional one. I rode over and looked at this facility before it opened, and noticed the narrow ramp with a 180 degree switch-back to get to the front door. Is there another way to access the LLoyd cycle station? Because if this ramp is the only way in then it is not suitable for long wheelbase cargo bikes, recumbants or tandems.
This article addresses parking on the ground and for large bikes. The previous article addressed another entrance (in the comments, IIRC). Sure I could tell you the answers, but I think you should work just a little bit.
“There are all types of racks, including ones on the ground that you don’t have to lift your bike up for. There are also spots for cargo and oversized bikes.”
This looks great! I want one of those foot pedal pumps!
So this bikeroom actually replaced their formerly FREE room(with keycard access to boot) with this fancy one and now they get to charge everyone monthly annual fees and NOW they are bike friendly yay!
If you work in an adjacent Lloyd building(I do), you also get to pay $15 monthly on top of the $20 annual registration yay! If you don’t work in any Lloyd towers be ready to pay at least the $200, plus more if you want to use anything other than the racks to lock up. On top of this the Lloyd buildings discourage locks being left on racks overnight.
So previously I was biking to work for free and had a secure lockup indoors(not common, I know, and I appreciated it!). Lloyd’s program says to me: Pay up sucker, otherwise, good luck commuting with your lock(s) and here’s your middle finger(ok, maybe it just feels that way).