Northwest Portland in spring 2015 may say goodbye to the Portland Police Association and hello to more apartments.

Jill Sherman, vice president of Portland development firm Gerding Edlen, said NW 19th LLC in July purchased Block 265 at 1313 N.W. 19th Ave. in the Nob Hill neighborhood for $1.65 million. She said the company plans to demolish the existing 5,000-square-foot, 58-year-old structure at the corner of Overton Street and 19th Avenue, and replace it with a six-story apartment complex.

The building’s current tenant – the Portland Police Association – expressed interest in staying until demolition starts, Sherman said.

Portland-based GBD Architects has drawn up plans for a six-story building with 58 apartments and 33 underground, mechanized parking spaces, according to information submitted to the Portland Bureau of Development Services. The architecture firm in September participated in a pre-application conference with the BDS to discuss preliminary designs.

Sherman said she expects the final design review hearing to take place in December or January.

“There will be a couple studios, but mostly it will be a mix of one- and two-bedrooms,” she said. “We met with the neighborhood association, got feedback from them and made some tweaks to the design.”

City records indicate that the Portland Police Association in August purchased a building at 1868 N. Lombard St. for $625,000. In October, the city approved a building permit to reconfigure inner walls to create meeting rooms.

Calls to the police association were not returned by press time.

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To Jeff Borlaug, director of brokerage at , development of the largest swath of vacant land in the city core is a perfect example of a chicken-and-egg dilemma.

A team at NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson has begun marketing the site – a 22-acre parcel covering 16 city blocks between the Pearl District and Northwest Portland. But when a development has the potential for as many as 4 million square feet of built space, many different ideas exist about how to start the project.

“We’re testing the waters and what we are finding out is that it’s difficult in determining what needs to be developed first,” Borlaug said. “Do you attract people there with the retail and then build the housing, or do you develop the housing and then bring the retail when the demand is there?”

According to J. Craig Boretz, vice president and chief tax officer with Con-way, the international freight company decided about four years ago to look into the possibility of developing the property it presently underutilizes.

Among some of the concepts were a system of canals, a baseball stadium and a new high school. Then the real estate bubble burst, and the project was placed on hold until earlier this year.

“The market has started to change and not only are developers looking to do projects, they are starting to get the financing to make them a reality,” Boretz said.

But from early in the process, Boretz said the Con-way team recognized that the development needed to be phased appropriately to be successful. This is because completion of the overall project could require 15 years, he said.

Chris Johnson, executive vice president at NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson, said initial interest from developers has been for market-rate apartments. This may be because a strong retail presence exists already in surrounding districts.

Sam Rodriguez, vice president of development with the regional office of Mill Creek Residential Trust, is presently conducting predevelopment work for the first project on the Con-way site. The company is building a 179-unit market-rate apartment complex at the corner of Northwest 23rd Avenue and Savier Street.

Johnson said other apartment projects could move forward at the site, which is bordered by Pettygrove Street, Quimby Street, 21st Avenue and 22nd Avenue.

But the only certainty right now, Johnson said, is that Con-way wants to develop the outskirts of the properties first to make a distinct area and then move inward.

A group of Portland State University graduate students, however, last year pitched a different strategy for the site. The students recommended first anchoring the site with a Target store, which would be built in the first phase of development. The area would then become a destination before people would be invited to reside there.

But as Borlaug pointed out, businesses won’t necessarily rush to move into a new area.

“It’s true,” he said. “If you want to talk people into moving there, you need to have the amenities there to support them.

“But if there aren’t residents living in the neighborhood, it’s a hard sale to retailers because they don’t know what the demographic will be. A restaurant needs to know if the people are going to want a white linen-type place or a buffet.”

Johnson said the market will ultimately determine what is built.

“This isn’t going to be the traditional master-planned development where everything is decided from the onset and produced by a master developer,” he said. “We see it as more like the Brewery Blocks, where their flexibility with having a lot of land and not a definitive plan or developer made the project successful.”

In addition to drawing strong interest from developers representing residential and small retail, Johnson noted that the site also is attracting developers and companies looking to build offices. Such projects could help activate the area, he said.

The uncertainty won’t last long. Johnson said three or four strong ideas have come out of just two months of marketing. He expects a deal to be drawn up within the next 90 days for at least one of the properties.

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A residential property now up for sale in Northwest Portland would be extravagant for the average home owner, but – with some manipulation – it could be a good fit for a creative user.

The Durkheimer House, at 2415 N.W. Lovejoy St., is a 7,800-square-foot, Colonial Revival home built in 1899. The seven-bedroom, four-bathroom house is for sale for $1.395 million. Though the property is zoned residential, the space would work for other uses, as long as the developer could circumvent city zoning.

The home was built by James and Delia Durkheimer, grocery store owners who moved to Portland from Burns. The property contributes to the historic designation of the Alphabet District. The 2.5-story home has a porch and balcony with a turned balustrade and Tuscan column support.

Owner Michael Short, who now lives in Singapore, bought the property in 2004. He put it up for sale in December 2010.

Several people have inquired about mixed-use possibilities, said Charles Turner, broker with Prudential Northwest Properties. Zoning classes are scattered among properties in the area; some allow for office and retail, and some – as in the case of the Durkheimer house – do not.

But the property would suit a bed-and-breakfast, Turner said. “There are no red flags for that,” he said.

The Portland Bureau of Development Services also will look at making exceptions and zoning changes on a case-by-case basis.

For details on purchasing the Durkheimer House, contact Turner at 503-936-7764 or cturner@prunw.com. – Aaron Spencer

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One ominous-looking mansion stands out in Portland’s Nob Hill neighborhood of quaint, friendly homes.

The William Temple House, at 2023 N.W. Hoyt St., looks something like Hogwarts or the House on Haunted Hill. Despite its prominence, it has been for sale for four years. The asking price for the 20,000-square-foot property is $2.7 million.

The main part of the property, the MacKenzie House, was built in 1896 by Kenneth MacKenzie, a prominent Portland physician who helped establish what became Oregon Health & Science University.

MacKenzie built the property as a home for his family, and at the time it was one of the most ornate buildings in Portland. It’s built in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, evocative of a medieval castle, a style made popular at the time by Scottish poet Sir Walter Scott. The exterior is made of rough-hewn Tenino stone quarried in Olympia, Wash. It features a turret, narrow windows, wrought-iron railing and ornaments, porches and a slate roof. The bust of a white stag juts from the side of a building, a symbol of the MacKenzies’ Scottish family crest.

Inside, the home features hand-carved golden oak and cherry wood, mosaic tile work and coffered ceilings with embossed white, tin trim.

The house was sold by family members after MacKenzie’s death in 1920 and passed through several owners, at times serving as a speakeasy and boarding house. It was acquired in 1946 by the Society of Jesus to serve as headquarters for the Jesuits’ Oregon province. They remained there until the mid 1960s, when it was purchased by the Good Samaritan Medical Center, which used it for administrative offices until selling it in 1971 to William Temple House.

William Temple House, named for the late Archbishop of Canterbury, is a nonprofit of Episcopal origins that provides pastoral and licensed psychological counseling and social service programs. The organization had an adjacent structure, Abbott Hall, built in 1981 to house its expanding programs.

The nonprofit plans to relocate to Southeast Portland, where its services are needed more, said Allen Hunt, executive director of William Temple House.

During the past four years, several prospective buyers have looked at the building, but none could afford the remodeling required to accommodate their uses, Hunt said. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places, and any alterations are subject to strict guidelines.

“Inside, it has absolutely gorgeous, hand-crafted, old-grove wood – oak and cherry. Anything you would do to match that craftsmanship would be very expensive,” Hunt said.

The property is zoned as high-density residential. Proposed uses include a bed-and-breakfast, professional offices, a conference center or a cultural center.

For details on purchasing the William Temple House, contact Ron Hansen of Prudential NW Properties at 503-684-2159 or rhansen@prunw.com.

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With its Spanish Colonial architecture, one property in Northwest Portland looks like it came out of a Hollywood studio lot, and in a way, it did.

The Film Exchange Building, at 935 N.W. 19th Ave., was built in 1931 as a regional distribution center for six major movie studios, where film was repaired and movies were screened for local theater managers. The property is being redeveloped and has space for lease.

The property was originally modeled after studio buildings in Hollywood. One building on the lot – a two-story structure with an arched doorway – is a watered-down replica of Paramount Pictures’ headquarters.

“It’s intentionally a Hollywood aesthetic,” said Henry Kofron, a redeveloper with Inner City Properties.

Kofron, attracted by the property’s character, bought it last year. He and his partners have redeveloped several buildings in Northwest Portland and are converting the Film Exchange Building into creative office and retail space.

The property is made up of two buildings: one two-story structure – the Paramount Pictures replica – and a single-story building divided into five spaces. The entire property is 35,000 square feet and covers a one-block stretch of Northwest 19th Avenue from Kearney to Lovejoy streets. An alleyway divides the property and is being redeveloped for pedestrian use.

Inside, some elements of the property’s past are visible, including three small, vintage theaters – 45-seat rooms where films were screened. Also scattered on the property are concrete vaults where film, which is highly flammable, was held.

The developers envision the space as a hub for Portland’s film, video, animation, multimedia and recording arts industry, a place where producers and investors could access all parts of the industry in one place.

Approximately 40 percent of the property is occupied. Spaces are being renovated, but 2,390 square feet are available for $24 per square foot, per year, modified gross. An additional 5,500 square feet will be available this summer at the same rate.

For details on leasing space in the Film Exchange Building, contact Kofron at 503-939-3201 or henry@icppdx.com.

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An apartment complex in Northwest Portland is up for sale – a rare find in the trendy Nob Hill neighborhood.

The Plymouth, at 1230 N.W. 21st Ave., is one of the ubiquitous, turn-of-the-century apartment complexes in the area. But it’s the only one that is for sale, and it isn’t lacking its own, unique charm.

The four-story building, built in 1912, is a classic example of the period’s architecture. The exterior is not unlike a layered red velvet cake, with white brick on the top and bottom and red brick in the middle. The windows are surrounded by geometric detailing.

Inside, the building is 15,363 square feet. It has some hardwood floors and dark woodwork in both the common areas and apartments. The latter also have bay windows, and the upper units have views of the West Hills.

The building receives more natural light than many in the area because it sits on a corner and is next to a shorter building.

“You know in Northwest you can get crammed in because you’re surrounded by buildings on all sides,” said broker Liz Tilbury with Tilbury Ferguson Investment Real Estate. “This one is unusual because it gets a lot of natural light.”

All 30 units in the complex – one-bedrooms and studios – are rented. The building has a net operating income of $123,750.

The building is being sold at an asking price of $2.25 million – $75,000 per unit.

The sellers have owned the building for 20 years and are now dissolving their partnership. The sellers, through Tilbury, refused requests for comment, but Tilbury said “they need to go separate directions.”
“Properties like this do not trade hands very often,” she said.

For details on The Plymouth, contact Tilbury at 503-224-6743 or liz@tfn-ire.com.

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Northwest 23^rd Avenue will reopen to two-way traffic between Everett and Glisan streets this week as construction moves farther south. The avenue will close between Burnside and Everett Street starting Wednesday.

Contractor Westech is digging out and rebuilding the travel lanes between Burnside and Lovejoy Street and repaving the surface. The parking lanes will get a three-inch overlay.

Curb ramps will also be brought up to Americans with Disabilities Act standards and pedestrian crossings will bump out into intersections at Westover, Johnson and Kearney Streets.

Sewer mains under Glisan, Hoyt, Johnson and Kearney are being replaced and new valves are being installed on the existing water main under 23^rd Avenue.

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The recession has created a now-or-never situation for retailers looking to enter Northwest Portland‘s Nob Hill neighborhood.

As some businesses leave the coveted retail district, each leaves a “fantastic opportunity” in its wake, Colliers International broker Ryan Pennington said. That’s because these opportunities ultimately tear down the barriers to entry in Nob Hill, which abuts the western edge of the Pearl District and extends westward toward Washington Park.

If a business doesn’t get in the door now, Pennington said, it may not be able to do so in the future, when the economy turns around.

But that’s only if businesses are willing to tweak their business models, said Kay Wolfe, who works in the neighborhood at Homestreet Bank and is the president of the Nob Hill Business Association.

“The businesses that are responsive to customer needs are doing well, while the ones that say, ‘This is the way we’ve always done business,’ didn’t do so well,” Wolfe said.

Whether a business can meet customers’ new needs comes down to whether it’s in a position to adapt, Pennington said. Many restaurants have slashed prices or offered deals to stay in their spaces to do this.

Wolfe said the pessimism surrounding the state of the economy has given way to optimism that one of the city’s most prominent retail districts is becoming more accessible to new businesses. Wolfe said she hadn’t seen available space stay on the market for long, even though she’s seen more space enter the market.

There’s still interest along the district’s retail corridors, Northwest 21st and 23rd Avenues, Pennington said, because the demographics haven’t changed during the recession.

Overall, the vacancy rate in Northwest Portland, including Nob Hill, stands at about 8 percent. Kathleen Healy, a broker with Urban Works, said the increase in available space has made it possible for start-ups to move to Nob Hill’s retail centers.

“There are far more opportunities now,” Brown said, “especially along Northwest 23rd.”

Most of the spaces on Northwest 23rd have small spaces, ranging from 1,000 to 3,400 square feet, Pennington said. It’s attractive for independent, boutique-style businesses.

Pennington said he’s currently working to secure a tenant for retail space at Northwest 21st and Everett, and has received plenty of interest.

“Businesses will be able to come in and backfill the space when it comes available,” Pennington said. “There will be good opportunities for small, new companies to come in during a down market.”

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