Freeman Motors is the renovation of a split-level 25,000 sq. ft. warehouse with attached offices into a warm, inviting auto showroom. It provides 22,000 sq. ft. of indoor auto showroom space and 3,000 sq. ft. of sales offices/space and utilitarian functions.
Holst designed a building that juxtaposes modern forms against a natural, Northwest materials palette. The showroom’s dramatically sloping rooflines are clad in cedar siding and accented by halved lodge-pole screens, giving the building a commanding yet inviting presence along Macadam Avenue.
The building exterior provides a higher degree of visibility from Macadam Avenue, a heavily traveled commuter artery in SW Portland. Charcoal-colored paint at the sales floor was chosen to accent the beauty of the surrounding Greenway District and nearby Willamette River.