By William Crawford

Calvert Farms
North Macrum Ave. and Fessenden St.
Lot subdivision

This new development lies within the triangle of land outlined by North Fessenden Street, North Macrum Avenue and the rail cut. Being built by Sentaur Inc. and marketed by Oregon Realty Company, the triangle will be divided up into 22 lots. A previously existing home on the property has been demolished for the construction project, said Wanda Brouse, Oregon Realty broker for the project.

Each new lot will include two-story, three-bedroom homes with 2.5 baths and 1,386 square feet. The new homes will come in two styles with two different floor plans each — both available with either front or rear master bedrooms. Each home promises a host of amenities including a one-car garage, Internet ports and hardwood floors.

The properties are advertised in the mid-$200,000 range. So far, five houses have been built, but only one has sold.

The homes have been tax abated for people earning less than $66,000 a year, explained Brouse. That means property taxes can be as low as $700 a year. “It’s a great opportunity to live in a high-quality new home,” she said.

Brouse would not release a firm completion date, but said that the project is ongoing.

Unnamed Single-level Condos
8216 N Edison St.
Project completed

This four-unit development was built by ARN Construction on a vacant lot.  Marketed by Mark Connelly of Connelly Realty, it boasts views (for the moment) of the Willamette and the St. Johns Bridge. The lot behind the development has been approved for a seven-lot subdivision with a maximum built height of 65 feet. The completed units include granite countertops, oak hardwood floors, and, in two units, vaulted ceilings.

Buyers making less than $66,000 will qualify for a tax abatement plan that will allow for 10 years of taxation on only the land itself and not the improvements.

Each unit has two bedrooms and two bathrooms and 1,200 square feet. So far, one unit is pending sale for $239,000 and another for $250,000, said Connelly.

The Montanas
North Montana Street
New Development Plans

Though still very early in the process, Jerry Eekhoff of We Develop, LLC has submitted a preliminary design advice application for a large development in the Arbor Lodge Neighborhood. Although the designs have approval from the neighborhood association, Eekhoff says he won’t submit a formal work application until the City Council has decided on rezoning the Interstate Light Rail Corridor. [See “High Stakes on Interstate,” page 7]

“The rezoning project needs to have flexibility to accommodate the whole corridor,” Eekhoff said, referring to the Overlook Neighborhood Association’s opposition to rezoning.

Designs by Myhre Group Architects, Inc. indicate the property will combine six lots on North Montana Street into one 333-by-110-foot lot, just south of North Buffalo Street near I-5 and Fred Meyer. Eekhoff says that his group is attempting to move rather than demolish the six existing houses on
the property.

The proposed project consists of three separate buildings connected by an underground parking garage, according to the design advice application submitted to the city. A two-way access ramp will be placed at the northeast corner on Buffalo. The total square footage of the development is listed at 36,667 square feet (0.84 acres) and is expected to include 153 units.

The new property will add a tree alley for privacy to existing houses and green spaces between the three new buildings of varying heights. The eight-story building, the largest, will have a patio section two stories up, according to the plans. The remaining two are shown to be five and four stories tall. Additional parking will be added along the alley that abuts the freeway wall. The alley will be paved along the entire property length and a one-way drive space will be built along the property’s southern edge.

Eekhoff says the north building will have 9,000 – 20,000 square feet of retail space, and while the higher levels will be generally more expensive, Eekhoff named a ballpark figure of $200,000 average price for each unit.

St. Johns Lofts
8110 N Willamette Blvd.
Town home and condo structure

A 12-unit condo structure with two town homes is taking shape on a previously vacant lot in St. Johns with views of the St. Johns Bridge, the Willamette and St. Helens. The design will reach up to four stories in one building and include an underground parking facility for residents. “It was originally supposed to be fully completed by August,” said Jean Crane, the development’s broker for Remax. “But it doesn’t look like that is going to happen.”

Crane said the first phase of construction will only tackle the two-floor town homes, attached in a gleaming glass structure designed by architect Tim Merrill and being built by E.J. Cassella and Associates. After these are completed, workers will begin construction on a separate glass building in the same style to house the condo units. Crane estimates the two town homes will be completed by July. As of mid-May, the windows of the town homes are in place, and buyers can select carpets and other materials for the interior.

Prices will range from $295,000 – $325,000 for the town homes and $295,000 – $310,000 for the two-bedroom condo units. So far none have been sold.

Coffeehouse-5
740 N Killingsworth St.
Conversion and remodel

First-time business owner Baxter Nelson says he’s in the process of reworking the office space on the corner of North Killingsworth Street and Albina Avenue, across from PCC Cascade, into a coffeehouse. He described the 1,000-square-foot space as “just a shell” requiring extensive remodeling by contractor B.D. Mack. The site previously housed the Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare services. Nelson says the space did not even have plumbing until he and his co-owner brother, Wesley, began their project.

“My brother and I just went crazy,” said Nelson. “We wanted everything custom, but it takes awhile to get everything just right.”

Nelson says he does not have a specific date when construction will be completed, but he estimates another couple months. The project began in March. It will include a patio area outside.