Last Friday, hundreds of construction workers from 28 different trades gathered to celebrate the end of the vertical rise of the Hyatt Regency Portland with a customary topping off. This summer, craftsmen and women endured 100+ degrees of heat while pouring concrete, raising the hotel floor by floor. As the rain descended on Portland that morning, it was a foreshadowing of the weather to come and all appreciated the move into the finishing work which takes place indoors and out of the elements.
Hotel developer Mortenson invited Council President Hughes to commemorate the end of the outside work. “To date, workers have totaled 236,000 hours on the project with more than 64,000 of those hours by apprentices which means we are creating pathways to construction careers,” stated Hughes. “Metro is grateful for Mortenson's commitment to recruit a diverse workforce and their co-investment in our pre-apprenticeship program and most importantly cultivating a respectful and safe workplace,” he continued.
The 600-room Hyatt Regency Portland will be completed in late 2019 and is projected to grow the region’s convention business by a third, increasing the Oregon Convention Center’s economic impact and the Portland area’s annual hotel business by 70,000 to 110,000 room nights.