A host of projects at the Port of Hood River are transforming the city’s waterfront.

Development is being driven by pent-up demand for industrial space, said Jeff Pickhardt, president of Key Development. It has completed several projects in the area, including a 33,000-square-foot processing facility for Turtle Island Foods and a 40,000-square-foot facility for outdoor clothier Dakine.

Increased development is significant in Hood River because it’s part of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, Pickhardt said.

“We’re seeing a substantial amount of development in a short amount of time,” he said. “We are working in a community that has a lot of public interest. It has been difficult to move projects at the waterfront for the last 20-plus years.”

Key Development now is planning an $18 million redevelopment of the former Hood River Expo Center to provide warehouse space for Turtle Island Foods. Construction is set to start this fall on two other commercial buildings, Pickhardt said.

“They’re intended to be flexible and angled toward a commercial user,” he said. “(They) will be suited toward businesses that walk the line between commercial and industrial – companies that do their prototyping here, but manufacture elsewhere.”

Just to the north of Key Development’s construction, the Port of Hood River is planning a $28 million mixed-use development on a 140,000-square-foot property facing Nichols Boat Basin. The port is working with Portland firm Walker Macy to produce construction drawings for the project on a larger site along the basin where Portland-based architectural firm Mackenzie has plans, said Michael McElwee, executive director at the Port of Hood River.

The port is in line to get a $500,000 grant that would allow it to start construction later this year on beach and waterfront improvements – including a trail along the basin for pedestrians and cyclists, McElwee said.

“That whole edge is important because in Hood River, you need to address the recreational and habitat needs of the river along with upland development,” he said.

Portland developer Bob Naito has proposed building an $18 million, 88-room Hampton Inn & Suites hotel along with a commercial building on the western edge of the basin, but is still waiting for land use approval. The project has twice received Hood River City Council approval and twice been remanded by the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals. The city is set to vote on the project again on July 7, Naito said.

“There’s substantial increase in recreational tourism and consequently there’s an explosion of vacation rental properties in Hood River,” he said. “The result of that is literally the housing stock is being taken off the permanent housing market. Because of the summer rental business, there is a shortage of affordable housing.”

Meanwhile, Friends of the Hood River Waterfront is keeping a close eye on development, Executive Director Linda Maddox said.

“We’re watching it,” she said. “They’re doing the access down there. We’re concerned about everything from the Expo Center to the Nichols Basin.”

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Tourism and recreation make up an increasing portion of Hood River’s overall economy, but the manufacturing sector also plays a huge role, said regional economist Dallas Fridley. Unlike retail buildings, however, there’s a shortage of available industrial buildings, he said.

That helps explain why, during a deep recession, the Port of Hood River is developing a 20,000-square-foot industrial building without having a tenant lined up. Construction of the Halyard Building is scheduled to begin next month at Portway Avenue and North Eighth Street.

Michael McElwee, the port’s executive director, said the local economy hasn’t been as bad as Oregon’s. That combination of a weak state economy and a stronger Hood River economy could benefit the port in two ways, he said.

First, contractor bids are coming in low across the board, as more contractors bid on fewer projects. Seventeen responsive companies submitted proposals for the Halyard Building project.

Second, the demand for light industrial space locally makes McElwee confident that the port, which has other light industrial space available for lease, will have no trouble finding tenants. “There’s real potential immediately, and there’s certainly going to be next year,” he said.

Construction on the tilt-up building is scheduled to last eight or nine months, and finish next May.

The shortage of industrial space results from Hood River’s unique landscape and land ownership mix, Fridley said. “You have a hilly place with a lot of government land,” he said. “There’s simply not a lot of places available for light industrial (uses).”

Because of that, Hood River has attracted small manufacturers tailored to the specific community. It’s a mix heavy on food and beverages, sports and recreation equipment, and agriculture.

Companies that need more space have had to look elsewhere, Fridley said. Cardinal Glass, for example, looked at Hood River before deciding to locate in nearby Odell.

The Halyard Building offers more than size, McElwee said. It won’t be the biggest building around, but it’s designed for a higher-profile company to use as a showcase as well as a manufacturing facility.

“It’s a signature location,” he said. “It’s by a new city park (and) it’s close to the river; it has a lot going for it.”

Development along the river can be controversial, Fridley said. Residents are concerned about sight lines, and wind surfers and kite boarders worry about how new buildings could affect the wind. But this location, near the Hood River Distillery building, has raised fewer concerns.

“(The port is) being more strategic about where (it) places (its) properties,” Fridley said. “There’s way, way, way less controversy here.”

The building’s design, by Richard Brown Architects, can’t hurt, McElwee said. It’s not an industrial-looking box, he said; in fact, the side facing the city park looks more like a retail storefront than a manufacturing space.

But residents also see the need for continued employment in the region, he said. “There’s a common recognition that the industrial core of the waterfront needs to be promoted and developed for job creation and business expansion.”

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Don’t be alarmed if you see people dangling from the Hood River Interstate Bridge this month. Beginning today, Burgess & Niple engineers will conduct a fracture/critical and in-depth inspection of the structure, which is owned by the Port of Hood River.

“The design of the bridge is such that some members are critical to the integrity of the bridge,” said Linda Shames, finance manager for the port. “Inspectors will look at every fracture/critical member on the bridge. Men will be climbing on the underside of the bridge.”

The Oregon Department of Transportation is coordinating and paying for the inspection, which is required every two years on fracture/critical bridges like the Hood River Interstate Bridge. With a fracture/critical structure, failure of one portion of the bridge can cause the entire structure to collapse. Several years ago, the federal highway department charged state departments of transportation with overseeing bridge inspections, according to Shames.

The inspection will be completed by Sept. 23.

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Work is moving forward on a project to construct the Port of Hood River‘s first light industrial building along the waterfront. Designed by Richard Brown Architects, the 20,000-square-foot flex-use Halyard Building will be located near Portway Avenue and North Eighth Street. It will be zoned for light industrial use.

“The building will be constructed as a shell,” Port of Hood River finance manager Linda Shames said. “Depending on who the tenants are, it could be one space, or up to six separate spaces.”

Though the port is still drawing up its documentation for the project, Shames said the design is completed. The project is expected to cost between $2.5 million and $3 million. The target is for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design silver certification.

“We have a lot of undeveloped space on the waterfront,” Shames said. “The land is predominantly recreational. We hope (the Halyard Building) starts the momentum for future development along the waterfront.”

A request for qualifications was issued July 29 for general contractors to build the Halyard Building. Bids are due by Aug. 11 at 5 p.m.

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