Portland’s historic streetscapes were composed of Belgian Blocks, more commonly referred to as cobblestones. From 1885 to the 1900s, the City of Portland used Belgian Blocks as the primary paving surface, bridging the gap between mud roads and asphalt pavement. To better understand how the City of Portland might redeploy the existing Belgian Blocks, we completed a research report on the Belgian Blocks for the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, and facilitated two listening sessions with the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission to gather perspective.

The report provides the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission (PHLC) and the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) with background information and technical data for consideration of how best the city might utilize the redeployment of its Belgian Blocks. Our report demonstrates that it is possible through manipulation of the stone surface, use of setting means and methods, and testing, to modify the Belgian Blocks to allow for reuse as horizontal surfaces. Modifying the physical characteristics of the blocks to meet tripping and slipping standards for re-deployment is possible. Many modification techniques exist for both shop and field modifications

FULL REPORT
City of Portland, Bureau of Planning and Sustainability: Study outlines opportunities for incorporating stone pavers into accessible public spaces.