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A Seattle-based developer plans to build up to 1,200 housing units at the site of a PepsiCo facility bottling plant off of Sandy Boulevard, in Northeast Portland.

Security Properties recently announced it purchased the 4.7-acre site from PepsiCo. The property’s size gives the developer the flexibility to respond to changing markets during a build-out phase that could last several years.

鈥淚n general, we think the property provides an opportunity for a pretty wide variety of uses,鈥� said John Marasco, chief development officer at Security Properties.

Housing is a likely focus for the developer, which has built several projects in Portland.

鈥淭he housing, we think, is a no-brainer,鈥� Marasco said. 鈥淭hat’s what we do. We’re a housing developer, primarily.鈥�

Security may reintroduce streets within the superblock to encourage movement within the property.

鈥淲e will re-establish what used to be a circulation grid there so we can break that site into smaller chunks,鈥� Marasco said. 鈥淚 really think we can create a village off of Sandy that will be cool.鈥�

The property is located at 2505 N.E. Pacific St., just off of Sandy Boulevard. The purchase price was not disclosed and has not yet been recorded in Multnomah County records.

Developers such as Guerrilla Development, Koz Development and Urban Development Group have brought more apartment units to Sandy Boulevard, a broad corridor that was long associated with industrial businesses and auto shops. As much of Northeast Portland has gentrified with luxury apartments, Sandy Boulevard has increasingly attracted developers’ attention as an underdeveloped street.

Marasco said Security expects Portland’s multifamily housing market to continue to be buttressed by strong job growth. Also, more residents are renting homes rather than buying them, boosting demand for apartments, he said.

A boutique grocery store is a possibility for the property as well, he said. A Fred Meyer store and a New Seasons store are within a mile of the property.

Offices are another possibility, Marasco said. The site is not far from what’s becoming an office corridor in Portland’s Central Eastside. The PepsiCo site’s proximity to Providence medical facilities may make health care offices an attractive use, he said.

PepsiCo’s use of the site had become increasingly incongruous with its neighbors. Complaints about the truck traffic from outbound soda deliveries have grown louder, and the value of the land has grown along with Portland’s bustling market.

Also, the site is smaller than most of PepsiCo’s modern distribution facilities, which tend to be 10 to 15 acres.

鈥淭he facility in general 鈥� even though it’s significant at 5 acres 鈥� it does not represent their model for distribution,鈥� Marasco said. 鈥淵ou put that together with what the market’s doing in Portland, it provides an opportunity for them to realize a significant value on that property.鈥�

The fate of a mid-century modern office building has not been decided, Marasco said. The building, designed by Scott & Payne, was included in the city’s 1984 Historic Resource Inventory as a significant example of 鈥淔ifties modern鈥� architecture.

鈥淲e haven’t studied it in any detail, but we agree it’s a cool building,鈥� Marasco said. 鈥淎gain, a development of the size we’re talking about, there certainly could be a spot where it could be relocated 鈥� or maybe it stays where it is. So we’re going to take a hard look at how that can be incorporated in the site.鈥�

The development stands to be the first project to go through a large-site master plan after implementation of the city’s Central City 2035 plan, which is scheduled to be adopted by the City Council early next year.

Security Properties is interested in moving quickly. If permits can be secured, the firm plans to begin construction in the first quarter of 2018, Marasco said.