After hearing a lecture by Oregon architect Pietro Belluschi, Storrs moved to Portland, Oregon, in 1954 after practicing in Fairfield, Connecticut, for a few years.[1][2][3] In Portland, he got his big break when he received the commission for the Portland Garden Club in the Goose Hollow area of Southwest in 1956.[1][3] Storrs next big project came in 1959 when he designed the Lumber Industry Pavilion at the Oregon Centennial.[3] The wood hyperbolic paraboloids were destroyed in 1962 by the Columbus Day Storm.[1][3] He designed a similar one, Marineland at Pier 99, located along Interstate 5 near the Washington border.[3] The upper level and hyperbolic paraboloid roof of Marineland at Pier 99, formerly known as the Totem Pole Marina, located at 1415 North Pier 99 Street, was demolished in July 2023.[4]
Storrs studied the culinary arts in London in the 1970s, but only prepared meals for his family and friends.[1] He died on August 31, 2003, in Portland at the age of 83.[1]
References
^ abcdefghijklmnGragg, Randy (September 3, 2003). "Remembering John Storrs the structure of a life - The acclaimed Oregon architect designed Salishan, pioneering the Northwest regional style". The Oregonian. p. B1.