Thunderbird Hotel

Thunderbird Hotel
What happened to the Orycon Jantzen Beach hotel?

Apparently it was bought out by Thunderbird, who never used it. It is now in decay. The roof is moldy and falling apart. Everything is in disrepair. It is so sad to see it that way.

I know Orycon moved downtown. I heard it was a disaster, not enough space and parking. How is it doing now?

Does anyone know why Thunderbird abandoned it? Any info at all? Thanks!

First to the question of OryCon; regardless of what anyone might have heard, my experience so far with the Marriott on the waterfront location has been quite positive. The ComCon accorded itself with aplomb, and so far the two Cons we've attended at that place went off well, considering the centrifugal pressures moving on short notice. Mind, that's not to say it was perfect – there were growing pains – but the new Marriott is a fun location and I rather like it overall. Cheap easy weekend parking is available at a "Smart Park" parking garage one block north, which is a very short walk in downtown Portland.

WRT the status of the old Red Lion Columbia River, my knowledge comes from a familiarity with Portland history and what I remember from reading The Oregonian on the subject over the last few years.

While the old hotel did change its name to the Thunderbird on the River, that's more of a reversion. The hotel was originally called the Thunderbird, part of a small Portland-based chain that was eventually absorbed by the Vancouver-based Red Lion Hotel empire, which was then absorbed by the Hilton imperium, which made the decision to gradually extinct the Red Lion brand until that actually proved to be a bad idea, which is why you still see Red Lions about.

The old Thunderbird was just that, though ... old. Red Lion decided to cut it loose, and the property was acquired by an interest calling itself Thunderbird Hotel LLC which returned the old name to the facility. But the company seems to be a holding company who acquired the property to develop it into something else. But the first attempt – an upscale luxury hotel – turned out to be wildly inappropriate for the location somehow, and the second attempt – a flirtation by the WalMart chain to build a store there – was just that, a flirtation, and came and went sometime last year, if memory serves correctly.

Once again, this info is drawn from memory, having read divers articles on it in The Oregonian over the years.

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