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Downtown Portland YWCA building for sale

By: Aaron Spencer//March 28, 2011//

Downtown Portland YWCA building for sale

Aaron Spencer//March 28, 2011//

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A multiuse complex in downtown Portland is for sale at an asking price the owner says is a bargain.

The YWCA Building, at 1111 S.W. 10th Ave., is a 62,112-square-foot, five-story structure holding an athletic club and office space. The building, which is for sale for $7.5 million, could serve various owners, including investors, schools or nonprofits.

The YWCA, a national but locally-owned nonprofit with no relation to the YMCA, put the building up for sale because the organization no longer needs a building with its kind of amenities.

The building has a gym area with locker rooms and a swimming pool, a basketball court, a cafeteria and kitchen, office space, an outdoor terrace and a residential dormitory. The property has two below-ground levels and on-site parking.

“It’s more space than we really need anymore,” said Julia Harper, director of finance and administration for the YWCA. “The services we offer are more dispersed around the community than only in downtown.

“The building is underutilized, so we want to redeploy those dollars to something that will be of more value to us,” she said.

The YWCA of Greater Portland started as an organization that provided housing to women. It had the building constructed in 1959. The athletic club fit into its model because it was set up as a place where women could exercise with other women.

“That’s more of a passé model,” said Eric Brown, YWCA executive director. “Now, it’s a fitness center that’s not unique to women or even focused on women.”

The YWCA now has a broader mission to empower women and eliminate racism. It helps women who are homeless or victims of domestic violence. The organization has been outsourcing management of the athletic club, which is no longer an inherent part of its service offerings, Brown said.

Brown said his favorite part of the building is its open-air terrace on the third floor.

“It’s private, but you get a sense of the rest of the city,” he said. “It’s an open space in downtown that feels safe and secure.”

Harper said she fondly remembers hosting day camps on the terrace. Children came there to plant vegetables and wildflowers, and residents of the next-door Eliot Tower – mostly seniors – came to help.

“It’s a great example of community and people of different generations interacting with each other,” she said.

For details on purchasing the YWCA Building, contact broker Jim Lewis of Cushman & Wakefield at 503-279-1743 or [email protected].



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