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With planned streetcar and bike routes in the pipeline near Portland’s Irvington neighborhood, developers of a new workforce housing project in the area say it’s poised to be the next 20-minute neighborhood. That’s why the only parking at the proposed 49-unit complex would be for bikes.

That doesn’t sit well with Irvington resident Dean Gisvold.

“There’s no parking in Irvington now,” Gisvold said. “I’m going to listen to what the applicant has to say, but adding 49 units of housing with no parking is going to significantly impact the area.”

Parking is one issue of many likely to arise as property owner Dennis Sackhoff and consultant Brad Hosmar of West Hills Development attempt to woo the Irvington Community Association and other neighbors. The developers will present their plans for the site, 1510 N.E. Hancock St., at a meeting with the Irvington Community Association later this month.

Sackhoff’s plan calls for a three-story workforce housing development. It would be similar in scale to the Lion and the Rose Victorian Bed & Breakfast Inn, which is adjacent to the site. An existing, transitional housing structure on the site would be demolished.

Previously, developer Leon Simms proposed to build an 18-unit, 64-foot-tall condominium complex at the site and was met with ire from neighbors. Portland’s Historic Landmarks Commission upheld an appeal in September 2008 by the Irvington Community Association that the proposed development, Irvington Squire, was too large and didn’t fit in with the neighborhood’s historic character.

“The Irvington Squire was so massive that it was out of place in the neighborhood,” said Mary Piper, co-chairwoman of the Irvington Community Association’s historic preservation committee. “And it would have only supplied 14 condos. I’m not opposed to increased density (in Irvington) if it’s appropriate, and livable.”

“We didn’t feel like the last (developer’s planned) architecture was compatible,” Hosmar said. “We wanted this to have a more residential feel. The (new design) is in a horseshoe shape centered around a courtyard. It will be unique, but will also tie in historically with other residences you find in Northeast Portland.”

The proposed development would have studio and one-bedroom units each between 400 and 600 square feet. Hosmar said he foresees residents being downtown workers seeking affordable housing close to a MAX light-rail line and a future streetcar line on Broadway. So, the project would limit parking to bikes – one spot per unit.

“We’re anticipating that younger people will move in,” said Sinan Gumusoglu, an Otak project manager working on the development. “You’re on a bike route. You’re on a bus route. You’re close to downtown. Some will bring cars, but it’s city living. We didn’t feel like we had to provide parking.”

Gisvold said he wants to be sure the new development would provide housing at rents people can afford. The site’s existing 18-unit Irvington Guest House, which serves as transitional housing, is one of the few affordable multifamily buildings left in the area, he said.

Hosmar said he won’t know what rents would be until the development’s design is finished, but added that they will be affordable.

“This won’t be like the Pearl District with $1,200 rents,” Hosmar said. “We want this to be a workforce housing opportunity for people that work downtown and don’t have cars.”