PORTLAND–The plans for the Roux Institute in Portland have been scaled back by developers after neighborhood residents said that building height and traffic would both be issues. The overall planned space has been reduced by about 27 percent, or 468,000 square feet.  One of the points of contention among residents was the height of buildings, of which one was planned to be 210 feet, which would have made it the tallest building in Portland. The Institute for Digital Engineering and Life Sciences (IDEALS) is the nonprofit redeveloping the campus on the site of the old B&M Baked Beans factory.

The shift in plans comes after developers filed a 20-year development outline with the city in February, citing plans for 500-800 apartments and just under 155,000 square feet of retail, dining, and lodging space.  IDEALS Executive Director Chuck Hewett told the Portland Press Herald that “The major concern we heard again and again was that it was just too dense; in particular, building heights and traffic were a concern.”  He continued saying that “we think we have made really, really significant concessions that hopefully, at the very least, show people we are listening to their concerns”

The Roux Institute at Northeastern University was established in January of 2020 by David Roux, a wealthy technology entrepreneur born in Lewiston.  Soon thereafter, IDEALS was founded to source and develop the permanent home of the Roux Institute.  The B&M factory was purchased in August of last year, with the development slated to begin by the end of 2022.