The City of Portland Water Bureau owns the property, structures, and infrastructure at 7025 N Willamette Boulevard. The Water Bureau no longer needs the property, structures, and infrastructure for on-going operations.
via Alma Tank (7025 N Willamette Blvd.) | North Portland | The City of Portland, Oregon.
Dutch architects Zecc have just completed the Viewpoint Sint Jansklooster, a conversion of an old water tower that was a local landmark into an observation platform, almost 150 feet high.
via Stair of the Week is inside an historic water tower : TreeHugger.
The Night Heron Rogue Theater is getting lots of press due to their sneaky tendencies. This time in an abandoned water tower in Chelsea, NY.
We’re not advocating trespassing or “illicit” behavior of any kind, but folks next time send us a watch!
Inside was a round wooden space no bigger than a freight elevator, filled with about a dozen people sipping whiskey cocktails. Couples sat at five petite tables built into the cedar paneling. A young woman mixed drinks behind a bar. Above people’s heads, a two-man band – accordion and upright bass – serenaded from a platform.
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This was life inside the Night Heron, a decidedly illegal nightclub run by a group of adventure-minded artists in a water tower atop a vacant building in Chelsea for eight weekends in March, April and May.
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Mysterious helpers led guests through one decrepit building into another and up 12 flights of stairs to the roof. The watches were taken at the door, but guests were given the chance to buy watches at the end of the night if they wanted to continue the chain of invitation.
The Heron’s architect was N.D. Austin, a 31-year-old artist known for what he calls “trespass theater.” “It’s about making the invisible visible,” he said of his philosophy.
Mr. Austin located a suitable water tower by scouring Buildings Department records for violations with egregious scaffold fines. That can indicate a neglectful landlord, he said, which meant it might be a vacant building ripe for adopting as one’s own.
Oh don’t miss the entire article via Illicit Nightclub in a Chelsea Water Tower – NYTimes.com.
It’s hard not to be awed and sobered by a work of beauty created from discarded materials—it’s both a reminder of our wastefulness and our failure to assess value accurately.
And it’s impossible not to be wowed by the recent installations of New York artist Tom Fruin. Fruin, whose work has long been informed by found materials, has devoted much of the last few years to a series of city-specific public art projects made from salvaged pieces of plexiglass and steel.
These structures, straddling the line between sculpture and architecture, pay homage to iconic elements found in each city’s architectural vernacular.
TreeHugger‘s water tower conversion article.
There are great pictures of the modern interior – but we really just like the developer Leigh Osborne’s quote about pigeon poo.
Water towers do not make for easy conversions; there are going to be lots of stairs. London developer Leigh Osborne took a tower dating back to 1867 and converted it into “one of the most lavish and eccentric residences in the city”. It was a challenge; he tells the Penarth Times that “There were 2,000 dead pigeons in there, and poo that went up to the top of your wellies!”
via Water Tower Converted Into Superluxe London Home : TreeHugger.
A pair of British designers turned a disused, 68-foot-tall industrial water tower in East Germany into a stunning residence. The design takes advantage of the adjacent nature reserve with 360-degree windows in what was once the tank.
via Fire-Inspired: 14 Converted & New Lookout Tower Homes | WebUrbanist.
“Watertower” is a multicolored plexiglass and steel sculpture of a water tower that is installed on the roof of a building in Brooklyn (making-of video). Brooklyn-based artist Tom Fruin built the sculpture out of local salvaged materials, including about 1000 scraps of plexiglass . The sculpture is lit by the sun during the day, and at night is illuminated by Arduino-controlled light sequences. “Watertower” will be on display through June 2013.
via Laughing Squid.
Much of the house is clad with old wood from fences and old buildings, see below…
Some parts of the house are even from a chicken coop, like that wall down there.
The timbers used on the pictures above and below are recycled from old boxcars and a hot springs water tower.
Parts of the kitchen, including the cabinets, came from an old motel.
via Small Rustic Cabin on 40 Acres in Colorado with Mountain Views for Sale.
The water tower located near Ash and Pine Streets was deconstructed during the month of November. (Yvon Theriault/CBC)
“The video made the whole process look organic,” Theriault said. “It was like watching a banana being peeled.”
via Water tower take-down like ‘peeling a banana’ – Sudbury – CBC News.