Centennial Mills

This long-deserted flour mill complex along the Willamette River was once Portland's biggest economic engine, producing enough wheat to make Oregon one of America's biggest producers. For the past 20 years, it has stood empty, even as the Pearl District exploded around it. Can it be preserved, should it be torn down for affordable housing, or could Centennial Mills continue as an industrial ruin and park? This episode features interviews with historian Chet Orloff, who worked at the mills as a young man, and Prosper Portland development director Lisa Abuaf, who is leading the city's effort to transform Centennial Mills equitably.

Om Podcasten

In Search of Portland is a continuing journey through the city we love: a celebration of old and new landmarks, and the dreamers who populate them. Each episode is devoted to one special building or place—a sacred ground of sorts—with a focus on its past, present and future.