PAGE 8 | November 16, 2018 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
Topping-out ceremony at new Multnomah County courthouse
Multnomah County held a “topping
out” ceremony Nov. 9 to celebrate
completion of most of the steel frame-
work on its new Central Courthouse.
Members of Iron Workers Local 29
and Operating Engineers Local 701
hoisted an iron beam to the 17th floor
of the building, currently under con-
struction at 236 SW First Ave. in Port-
land, near the west end of the
Hawthorne Bridge. The beam, painted
white, bore signatures of many of the
500 construction workers on the proj-
ect, along with their respective union
locals, plus numerous Multnomah
County employees, union officials, and
other dignitaries. On top of the beam,
by tradition, were an American flag to
symbolize patriotism and an evergreen
tree to symbolize permanence and the
everlasting nature of the building.
The 325-foot tower will replace the
outdated and overcrowded existing
courthouse at 1021 S.W. Fourth Ave.
Completion is set for spring 2020.
At a cost of $325 million, the new
courthouse will have 44 courtrooms;
the Multnomah Law Library; Family
Court Services, which provides medi-
ation, counseling, and educational
classes; CourtCare, a free, drop-in
child-care service for low-income fam-
ilies who have business at the court-
house; and a coffee stand run by the
Oregon Commission for the Blind.
The project is being built under a
project labor agreement signed by
Multnomah County, the Columbia Pa-
cific Building Trades Council, and the
Pacific NW Regional Council of Car-
penters. The agreement contains ag-
gressive goals for minority and women
apprenticeship and journey level work-
ers. Hoffman Construction is the gen-
eral contractor.
— Michael Gutwig
Crane operator Mike Robbins of Operating Engi-
neers Local 701 gives the victory sign after plac-
ing iron beam on the 17th floor. Robbins works
for Hoffman Structures Inc.
The “raising-gang” — the men
who set the iron beam in place
— are Jacob Trovillo and Curtis
Crouch in this photo, and
Chance Payne in the photo
above right. They are mem-
bers of Iron Workers Local
29 and work for Alliance
Industrial Group (AIG).
Mike Pullen, communications coordinator for Multnomah County and a
member of AFSCME Local 88, puts his autograph on the beam.
