# Failing Office Building > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Failing_Office_Building > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Failing_Office_Building.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failing_Office_Building > Source revision: 1228903062 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Historic building in Portland, Oregon, U.S.}} {{redir|Failing Building}} {{Infobox NRHP | name = Failing Office Building | nrhp_type = | image = Failing Office Building (620 Building) - Portland Oregon 2017.jpg | caption = Failing Office Building in 2017 | location = 620 SW 5th Avenue
[Portland, Oregon](/source/Portland%2C_Oregon) | coordinates = {{coord|45.519179|-122.677007|region:US-OR_type:landmark|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | locmapin = USA Portland downtown#Oregon#USA | map_caption = Location within downtown Portland | area = | built = 1907 | architect = [Whidden & Lewis](/source/Whidden_%26_Lewis) | architecture = Early Commercial | added = October 31, 2007 | mpsub = Downtown Portland, Oregon MPS | refnum = 07001129{{NRISref|2007a}} }} The '''Failing Office Building''' is a building in downtown [Portland](/source/Portland%2C_Oregon), [Oregon](/source/Oregon), [United States](/source/United_States) that was listed on the [National Register of Historic Places](/source/National_Register_of_Historic_Places) on October 31, 2007.{{cite web|title=Oregon National Register List|publisher=Oregon Parks and Recreation Department|url=http://www.oregon.gov/OPRD/HCD/NATREG/docs/oregon_nr_list.pdf|page=32|format=PDF|date=June 6, 2011|accessdate=January 27, 2014|archive-date=June 9, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110609105953/http://www.oregon.gov/OPRD/HCD/NATREG/docs/oregon_nr_list.pdf|url-status=dead}} The building was built during the rapid growth in Portland's business district after the [Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition](/source/Lewis_and_Clark_Centennial_Exposition) in 1905. It was built with six stories in 1907, with a six-story addition in 1913. It features a reinforced steel-frame structure with facades of yellow brick and glazed terra cotta.{{cite web|url={{NRHP url|id=07001129}} |format=PDF|title=National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Failing Office Building |author=Fitzgerald, Kimberli|date=February 27, 2007|publisher=National Park Service|accessdate=January 27, 2014}} The Failing Office Building is currently known as '''The 620 Building'''. ==History== The building was built for [Henry Failing](/source/Henry_Failing), the fifteenth mayor of Portland. He was the son of [Josiah Failing](/source/Josiah_Failing), also a mayor of Portland. It was originally named the Gevurtz Building, for the ground-floor [Gevurtz Furniture Company](/source/Gevurtz_Furniture_Company). In 1918, the [Portland Gas and Coke Company](/source/Portland_Gas_and_Coke_Company) signed a lease with the Failing estate, at which time it was named the Gasco Building. Portland Gas and Coke moved its operations to the [Public Service Building](/source/Public_Service_Building_(Portland%2C_Oregon)) in 1927, so the building was renamed the Failing Building. The architects, [William M. Whidden](/source/William_M._Whidden) and [Ion Lewis](/source/Ion_Lewis), of the firm [Whidden & Lewis](/source/Whidden_%26_Lewis), were prominent in Portland around the beginning of the 20th century. Their residential buildings were mostly in the [Colonial Revival](/source/Colonial_Revival_architecture) style, while their commercial buildings were primarily in the 20th century classical style. The commercial buildings often featured brick, along with [terra cotta](/source/Glazed_architectural_terra-cotta) ornamentation. In December 2006, Walker Place LLC purchased the {{convert|103077|sqft|m2|adj=on}} Failing Office Building (620 Building) from 620 Associates LLC for $11.35 million.[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4184/is_20070221/ai_n18626433/pg_1 Portland Real Estate Transactions: February 21, 2007] ==Renovations== In 1913, Whidden & Lewis oversaw the addition of six stories for the [Gevurtz Furniture Company](/source/Gevurtz_Furniture_Company). In 1951, [JJ Newberry](/source/JJ_Newberry) remodeled the first and second floors (Glenn Stanton Architect) of the Failing Building and constructed a new six-story building, which replaced the Richmond Building, located just to the east. A ceramic veneer was added which covered the original large window openings on the first and second floors. In 2008, the Failing Building (620 Building) underwent a major facade renovation of the first and second floors. The 1951 ceramic veneer was removed, allowing the display windows to be reinstalled. With the addition of new steel awnings, concrete pilasters, and decorative tile, the building's facade was renovated to an approximation of its original 1913 appearance.[http://www.waterleaf.com (Waterleaf Architecture)] ==See also== *[Architecture in Portland, Oregon](/source/Architecture_in_Portland%2C_Oregon) *[National Register of Historic Places listings in Southwest Portland, Oregon](/source/National_Register_of_Historic_Places_listings_in_Southwest_Portland%2C_Oregon) ==References== {{reflist}} ==External links== * {{Commons category-inline}} {{National Register of Historic Places Oregon}} {{Portal bar|Architecture|National Register of Historic Places|Oregon}} Category:Office buildings in Portland, Oregon Category:Office buildings completed in 1907 Category:Office buildings completed in 1913 Category:National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Oregon Category:1907 establishments in Oregon Category:Buildings and structures in Southwest Portland, Oregon --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Failing Office Building](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failing_Office_Building) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failing_Office_Building?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.