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  #41  
Old Posted Jan 30, 2006, 9:58 PM
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Interesting considering that the Elizabeth builders origonally tried to buy that building.
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  #42  
Old Posted Jan 30, 2006, 10:55 PM
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there is the historic buddah building next door which might complicate redeveloping that 1/4 block.

i never noticed that article about AmEx & the Pearl, interesting. i guess when a large corporation takes a liking to a neighborhood like the pearl it must help in spreading pearl-style development around the country.
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  #43  
Old Posted Jan 31, 2006, 4:42 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pdxstreetcar
there is the historic buddah building next door which might complicate redeveloping that 1/4 block.
I'm pretty sure I saw a "For Sale" sign on the Buddha just last week.
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  #44  
Old Posted Jan 31, 2006, 5:33 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bvpcvm
I'm pretty sure I saw a "For Sale" sign on the Buddha just last week.
Yea, I think that sign has been there for a while too. I remember it from a long time ago.
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  #45  
Old Posted Feb 2, 2006, 7:49 PM
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Custom House hotel plan waits on lease
Thursday, February 02, 2006
By Su-jin Yim

The months roll on but his confidence hasn't faded.

The developer of a plan to turn one of the city's most architecturally distinctive buildings into a boutique hotel says he expects to start construction late this spring, even though he has yet to finalize a lease.

Keith Pochter of The Pochter Group Limited of Northbrook, Ill., is negotiating a long-term lease to develop the U.S. Custom House on the North Park Blocks.

The U.S. General Services Administration, which manages federal buildings, announced almost a year ago that it had selected Pochter over Portland developer Venerable Properties, which had hoped to create a mixed-use space with a section for the University of Oregon architecture school.

Last year, the agency said it planned to sign with Pochter within four months. That plan called for an upscale, 82-room Wyndham hotel. But they're still working on it, says agency spokesman Bill Lesh.

"It's just going slower than we anticipated when it was announced," he says, though more information may be available this month.

The agency's choice disappointed some neighborhood activists who were hoping for community space in the majestic, 100,000-square-foot building at 220 N.W. Eighth Ave. The 1901 Italian Renaissance structure, which has sat empty since the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers moved out in 2004, was designed by architect James Knox Taylor.

A hotel is a good plan for the building, Pochter says.

"Your hotel marketplace is very strong and growing quarterly with some fairly significant increases" in room rates, Pochter says.

Pochter, who frequently visits Oregon, says the plan is moving about as he expected. He hopes the hotel will open in time to take advantage of summer festivals.

"The process has been exactly what it was meant to be," he says. "I'm a very focused individual who wants to complete what he started. That's exactly what I intend to do."

Su-jin Yim: 503-294-7611; suyim@news.oregonian.com
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  #46  
Old Posted Feb 2, 2006, 7:51 PM
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Custom House hotel plan waits on lease
Thursday, February 02, 2006
By Su-jin Yim

The months roll on but his confidence hasn't faded.

The developer of a plan to turn one of the city's most architecturally distinctive buildings into a boutique hotel says he expects to start construction late this spring, even though he has yet to finalize a lease.

Keith Pochter of The Pochter Group Limited of Northbrook, Ill., is negotiating a long-term lease to develop the U.S. Custom House on the North Park Blocks.

The U.S. General Services Administration, which manages federal buildings, announced almost a year ago that it had selected Pochter over Portland developer Venerable Properties, which had hoped to create a mixed-use space with a section for the University of Oregon architecture school.

Last year, the agency said it planned to sign with Pochter within four months. That plan called for an upscale, 82-room Wyndham hotel. But they're still working on it, says agency spokesman Bill Lesh.

"It's just going slower than we anticipated when it was announced," he says, though more information may be available this month.

The agency's choice disappointed some neighborhood activists who were hoping for community space in the majestic, 100,000-square-foot building at 220 N.W. Eighth Ave. The 1901 Italian Renaissance structure, which has sat empty since the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers moved out in 2004, was designed by architect James Knox Taylor.

A hotel is a good plan for the building, Pochter says.

"Your hotel marketplace is very strong and growing quarterly with some fairly significant increases" in room rates, Pochter says.

Pochter, who frequently visits Oregon, says the plan is moving about as he expected. He hopes the hotel will open in time to take advantage of summer festivals.

"The process has been exactly what it was meant to be," he says. "I'm a very focused individual who wants to complete what he started. That's exactly what I intend to do."

Su-jin Yim: 503-294-7611; suyim@news.oregonian.com
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  #47  
Old Posted Feb 22, 2006, 4:35 PM
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I've created a photo thread of the Pearl, come see the progress!
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=99264
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  #48  
Old Posted Feb 28, 2006, 10:37 PM
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More condos coming
The Pearl District’s appetite for condos appears insatiable with two new towers in the planning stage. The first will be called 937 Condos, reflecting its address, 937 N.W. Glisan St. It will contain 131 units in 16 stories.
Another 16-story tower will have 200 condos on a property called Block 19, located just north of Union Station on Northwest Ninth Avenue. Block 19 will complement another building that is planned for development across Ninth Avenue.
The two curved buildings will face the street, creating a hublike effect at Northwest Ninth Avenue and Front Street. Both developments currently are being reviewed by city planners.
According to Jasmine Ruthdotter, who tracks Pearl development for the design and transportation committee of the Pearl District Neighborhood Association, 1,500 new condo units are planned for the neighborhood over the next three years. Currently, Ruthdotter says, there are about 4,000 condos in the district.
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  #49  
Old Posted Mar 7, 2006, 7:34 PM
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Quick overview on Pearl development
http://adserver1.harvestadsdepot.com...ian/ss/042114/


By Lynnette Fusilier

There is something for everyone in the Pearl real estate market. If you are shopping for unparalleled opulence and expansive views, consider a unit in THE METROPOLITAN, the Pearl's tallest building at 11th and Lovejoy. Developed by Hoyt Street Properties, the 19-story LEED certified Metropolitan will feature 136 residential units and offer concierge service, guest suites, individual wine storage and other luxurious amenities.

For those who enjoy living large, consider a home in THE CRONIN BLOCK at NW 13th and Marshall. This yet unnamed, "New York style" red-bricked building from developer Robert Ball will house 244 residential units and ground level retail space. This 15-story building will be the largest mixed-use development in the Pearl.

If the environment and energy conservation tops your list of priorities, consider a unit in THE CASEY at 12th and Everett. This 17-story building developed by Gerding Edlen is adjacent to the Brewery Blocks and is designed to be the first LEED Platinum designated condo in the country. Features include solar panels for water heating, ground source heat pumps, and unique exterior facades integrated with Bullseye glass.

For those that crave historic detail, consider a home in THE CRANE BUILDING at 14th and Irving. Built in 1907, this six-story warehouse will contain 30 loft-style units and two penthouses and will be eligible for tax abatement. Condition for tax abatement requires that the 30 lofts be rented out as apartments until 2012. The penthouses are new construction and do not qualify for tax abatement.

Looking for commercial space? THE GADSBY BUILDING, a former furniture warehouse at 13th and Hoyt is undergoing a major facelift. Historical details-wood floors, large beams and exposed brick walls-are left intact and restored to the original luster. The building is owned and managed by Rick and Peter Michaelson and has a boutique feel hallmarked by distinctive details and personalized customer service.
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  #50  
Old Posted Mar 7, 2006, 8:28 PM
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How about if you crave something....cheap?
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  #51  
Old Posted Mar 9, 2006, 7:11 PM
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Galleries buy permanence in the Pearl
Property - A stronger market allows galleries to reclaim the district as the heart of artness
Thursday, March 09, 2006
D.K. ROW
The Oregonian

Portland's Pearl District is reclaiming its place as Oregon's premier fine arts marketplace, buoyed by a growing interest in local artists and a recovering economy.

Within the past 18 months, several well-known galleries have bought new spaces in the district, which had lost many of its top galleries to rising rents in the fast-developing neighborhood, prompting questions about whether art could survive in the Pearl.

Now, developer Jim Winkler is on the verge of finalizing purchase agreements with four more important Portland galleries and one San Francisco transplant, and a new art center housing them is expected to open on the North Park Blocks by the spring of 2007.

The resurgence of fine art galleries in the Pearl District follows a steady growth in the market for local artists, fueled both by local collectors and new buyers from around the country, gallery owners say. And the Pearl's central location has encouraged owners to buy their own spaces.

The new complex, in the old Daisy Kingdom building at 123 N.W. Eighth Ave., punctuates the trend.

Among the recent events:

The purchase of a large new space by the Elizabeth Leach Gallery at 417 N.W. Ninth Ave. Leach is one of the Oregon dealers with a national reputation.

The move by two of Leach's peers, high-end galleries PDX Contemporary Art and Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery, into similarly attractive spaces of their own close to Leach on Northwest Flanders St.

The construction of an artist residency program and exhibit space on Northwest Ninth Avenue by Portland Art Museum patron and art collector Sarah Miller Meigs. Meigs' donations have supported new contemporary art programming at the museum's newly opened modern art wing.

"Business is good"

The activity in the Pearl reflects a new aggressiveness by art dealers in town and the steady growth of the art market, according to Leach, who has been in the gallery business here since 1981.

"Portland's reflecting the larger art world," Leach says. "There's a genuine excitement and intensity in the art market right now, from beginners to hedge fund managers."

Leach says her gallery's business had grown steadily for the past several years, at a 5 percent to 10 percent clip, even through the dot-com crash. "Business is good," she says.

Jane Beebe, owner of PDX Contemporary Art, says her gallery has seen an increase in both out-of-town and local collectors, but that her participation in national art fairs has driven up the number of non-Oregonian collectors who consistently buy art from her.

"Still, being a dealer is a hand-to-mouth existence," Beebe says, "but right now it's a higher level of hand-to-mouth."

Located on the cusp of Old Town and the Pearl, Winkler's project promises to extend the Pearl District art scene farther east and closer to West Burnside St.

Beebe says the Pearl District location of Winkler's project makes perfect sense. Dealers want venues that are easily reachable by collectors and connected to other cultural activities. Collectors will like the plan's one-stop approach, which resembles other well-known art gallery hubs, such as Los Angeles' Bergamot Station.

"It's accessible from all parts of the city, by freeway from Beaverton, Southeast Portland and North Portland," says Beebe. "And from downtown by the streetcar and by foot. You couple that accessibility with other businesses in the area like restaurants, and it makes the Pearl attractive to people who can see art and have dinner."

New pieces of the Pearl

Each of the galleries that have bought space in Winkler's development has a different story. The one with the most at stake is the venerable Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery, which will leave quiet Southwest Corbett Ave. for the bustle of the Pearl.

And the bustle is what's attractive, says executive director David Cohen. Attendance at the 69-year-old museum has dipped as low as 12,000 people a year.

"The tree that falls in the forest doesn't make a sound," Cohen says. "I can't condone that. We should be doing more, much more, to say we are making a difference in the community."

The location next to many galleries in the light-rail accessible Pearl District appealed to Cohen so much that he was one of the first players to commit to Winkler's plan, eventually claiming the biggest chunk of the complex's gallery space -- 15,000 square feet.

To raise part of the $3.6 million it will cost to buy the new space, the museum is trying to sell its Southwest Corbett Avenue building for $2 million. The museum will have to raise the remaining $1.6 million, and another $2.4 million to fund building improvements and an endowment.

"We're going to change the way people see us." Cohen says.

Blue Sky Gallery, another nonprofit, has shown socially conscious photography for the past 30 years, mostly in a small Pearl District space, and it's hoping to secure its future in the Pearl, too.

"Blue Sky is 30. And one of the things you do at 30 is buy a house," says Christopher Rauschenberg, the gallery's board chairman. To purchase the 3,800-square-foot space that will double its size, Blue Sky is undertaking a $2 million capital campaign, aided by the sale of a $1 million painting donated by legendary artist Robert Rauschenberg, Christopher's father.

The commercial galleries involved in the development -- Augen Gallery, Froelick Gallery and Charles A. Hartman Fine Art -- are also betting on the Pearl. And betting a lot: Prices in the development hover around $1 million, according to Winkler, who developed Adidas Village in North Portland and is a prominent local art collector and supporter.

"I'm freaking out," says Charles Froelick, who currently rents space in Southwest Portland. "It's exciting, and I want to puke. But this is a great opportunity. I'll get new visitorship that I wouldn't get on Second Avenue."

Bob Kochs, who owns the print specialist Augen Gallery, will keep his Southwest Second Avenue location and open a satellite gallery in the Pearl. Charles A. Hartman Fine Art is the only new gallery in Winkler's group. Hartman moved to Portland about a year ago from San Francisco and is still deciding his gallery's focus.

Gallery owner Rod Pulliam says it's all part of a natural process.

"There's a maturing in the art world, and buying space is part of that," he says. "You realize that if I'm going to stay in this location, I really need to be my own landlord, because of all the development and potential for rent increase. No one realized how stable the Pearl would become."

D.K. Row: 503-294-7654 or dkrow@news.oregonian.com.
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/orego...830.xml&coll=7
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  #52  
Old Posted Mar 9, 2006, 7:12 PM
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Galleries buy permanence in the Pearl
Property - A stronger market allows galleries to reclaim the district as the heart of artness
Thursday, March 09, 2006
D.K. ROW
The Oregonian

Portland's Pearl District is reclaiming its place as Oregon's premier fine arts marketplace, buoyed by a growing interest in local artists and a recovering economy.

Within the past 18 months, several well-known galleries have bought new spaces in the district, which had lost many of its top galleries to rising rents in the fast-developing neighborhood, prompting questions about whether art could survive in the Pearl.

Now, developer Jim Winkler is on the verge of finalizing purchase agreements with four more important Portland galleries and one San Francisco transplant, and a new art center housing them is expected to open on the North Park Blocks by the spring of 2007.

The resurgence of fine art galleries in the Pearl District follows a steady growth in the market for local artists, fueled both by local collectors and new buyers from around the country, gallery owners say. And the Pearl's central location has encouraged owners to buy their own spaces.

The new complex, in the old Daisy Kingdom building at 123 N.W. Eighth Ave., punctuates the trend.

Among the recent events:

The purchase of a large new space by the Elizabeth Leach Gallery at 417 N.W. Ninth Ave. Leach is one of the Oregon dealers with a national reputation.

The move by two of Leach's peers, high-end galleries PDX Contemporary Art and Pulliam Deffenbaugh Gallery, into similarly attractive spaces of their own close to Leach on Northwest Flanders St.

The construction of an artist residency program and exhibit space on Northwest Ninth Avenue by Portland Art Museum patron and art collector Sarah Miller Meigs. Meigs' donations have supported new contemporary art programming at the museum's newly opened modern art wing.

"Business is good"

The activity in the Pearl reflects a new aggressiveness by art dealers in town and the steady growth of the art market, according to Leach, who has been in the gallery business here since 1981.

"Portland's reflecting the larger art world," Leach says. "There's a genuine excitement and intensity in the art market right now, from beginners to hedge fund managers."

Leach says her gallery's business had grown steadily for the past several years, at a 5 percent to 10 percent clip, even through the dot-com crash. "Business is good," she says.

Jane Beebe, owner of PDX Contemporary Art, says her gallery has seen an increase in both out-of-town and local collectors, but that her participation in national art fairs has driven up the number of non-Oregonian collectors who consistently buy art from her.

"Still, being a dealer is a hand-to-mouth existence," Beebe says, "but right now it's a higher level of hand-to-mouth."

Located on the cusp of Old Town and the Pearl, Winkler's project promises to extend the Pearl District art scene farther east and closer to West Burnside St.

Beebe says the Pearl District location of Winkler's project makes perfect sense. Dealers want venues that are easily reachable by collectors and connected to other cultural activities. Collectors will like the plan's one-stop approach, which resembles other well-known art gallery hubs, such as Los Angeles' Bergamot Station.

"It's accessible from all parts of the city, by freeway from Beaverton, Southeast Portland and North Portland," says Beebe. "And from downtown by the streetcar and by foot. You couple that accessibility with other businesses in the area like restaurants, and it makes the Pearl attractive to people who can see art and have dinner."

New pieces of the Pearl

Each of the galleries that have bought space in Winkler's development has a different story. The one with the most at stake is the venerable Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery, which will leave quiet Southwest Corbett Ave. for the bustle of the Pearl.

And the bustle is what's attractive, says executive director David Cohen. Attendance at the 69-year-old museum has dipped as low as 12,000 people a year.

"The tree that falls in the forest doesn't make a sound," Cohen says. "I can't condone that. We should be doing more, much more, to say we are making a difference in the community."

The location next to many galleries in the light-rail accessible Pearl District appealed to Cohen so much that he was one of the first players to commit to Winkler's plan, eventually claiming the biggest chunk of the complex's gallery space -- 15,000 square feet.

To raise part of the $3.6 million it will cost to buy the new space, the museum is trying to sell its Southwest Corbett Avenue building for $2 million. The museum will have to raise the remaining $1.6 million, and another $2.4 million to fund building improvements and an endowment.

"We're going to change the way people see us." Cohen says.

Blue Sky Gallery, another nonprofit, has shown socially conscious photography for the past 30 years, mostly in a small Pearl District space, and it's hoping to secure its future in the Pearl, too.

"Blue Sky is 30. And one of the things you do at 30 is buy a house," says Christopher Rauschenberg, the gallery's board chairman. To purchase the 3,800-square-foot space that will double its size, Blue Sky is undertaking a $2 million capital campaign, aided by the sale of a $1 million painting donated by legendary artist Robert Rauschenberg, Christopher's father.

The commercial galleries involved in the development -- Augen Gallery, Froelick Gallery and Charles A. Hartman Fine Art -- are also betting on the Pearl. And betting a lot: Prices in the development hover around $1 million, according to Winkler, who developed Adidas Village in North Portland and is a prominent local art collector and supporter.

"I'm freaking out," says Charles Froelick, who currently rents space in Southwest Portland. "It's exciting, and I want to puke. But this is a great opportunity. I'll get new visitorship that I wouldn't get on Second Avenue."

Bob Kochs, who owns the print specialist Augen Gallery, will keep his Southwest Second Avenue location and open a satellite gallery in the Pearl. Charles A. Hartman Fine Art is the only new gallery in Winkler's group. Hartman moved to Portland about a year ago from San Francisco and is still deciding his gallery's focus.

Gallery owner Rod Pulliam says it's all part of a natural process.

"There's a maturing in the art world, and buying space is part of that," he says. "You realize that if I'm going to stay in this location, I really need to be my own landlord, because of all the development and potential for rent increase. No one realized how stable the Pearl would become."

D.K. Row: 503-294-7654 or dkrow@news.oregonian.com.
http://www.oregonlive.com/news/orego...830.xml&coll=7
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  #53  
Old Posted Apr 10, 2006, 5:59 PM
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Crane construction adds to Pearl District's building boom
The Business Journal of Portland - April 7, 2006
by Wendy Culverwell
Business Journal staff writer

When the hammering stops at The Crane Building later this year, an old warehouse will emerge as a new office building with apartments, penthouses and an upscale seafood restaurant.

Six months after Guardian Management LLC acquired the historic Pearl District building as the real estate management company's new corporate headquarters, reconstruction is in full swing and a major tenant has agreed to lease a sizable chunk of the ground floor for a seafood restaurant.

Moana Restaurants LLC, a subsidiary of Auberge Resorts, will lease 8,500 square feet on the main floor, with an option to eventually buy the space.

The new restaurant, the 20th in the Auberge portfolio, is slated to open in early 2007. The company has upscale restaurants in numerous California resort destinations and operates the Paragon restaurants in Portland, San Francisco and Seattle.

At the Crane Building it will operate a 319-seat restaurant with formal and informal dining areas, banquet rooms and a retail fish market.

"Portland just doesn't have any hip, cool fish places," said Tom Brenneke, owner and president of Guardian Management.

Brenneke said the restaurant will compete with Jake's Famous Crawfish, which is nearby. Jake's is owned and operated by McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants Inc. and has been in business more than 110 years.

Guardian bought the Crane Building after outgrowing its Johns Landing office. The 70-person office moves in December.

Brenneke said the company scouted numerous locations all over the Portland area once it made the decision to leave Johns Landing.

Brenneke ultimately decided to "stay put" in Portland and settled on the Crane Building, at the corner of Northwest 14th Avenue and Irving Street. Neighbors include the new REI store and The Irving Street lofts.

Built in 1910 for the Crane Plumbing Co., it had been the home of American Rag for many years before Guardian acquired it in October.

Transforming an aging, 90,000-square-foot structure into a modern office building is a daunting physical challenge. Making it work financially is arguably tougher, Brenneke said.

To fortify it against future earthquakes, for example, engineers created a central core tied by metal rods to the rest of the structure. The old brick walls may rattle and roll, but the structure will stay put.

The seismic work accounts for $2.5 million of the $23 million budget to acquire and renovate the building.

To make the numbers work, Guardian renewed its listing on the historic registry, which qualified it for federal tax credits, and extended its listing with the state, which freezes property taxes for 15 years.

Although the building will be turned into a condominium complex, that can't happen for five years because of the federal tax credits, which defray up to 20 percent of the development costs.

The main floor will be given over to retail, the restaurant and a lobby for residents. Guardian will occupy the second and third floors. The fourth through sixth floors will house apartments and two penthouses are being constructed on the roof. They will be available for sale immediately since they aren't part of the historic structure.

The units, 3,000 and 2,200 square feet, will be marketed for $650 to $750 a square foot -- a price Brenneke said is competitive in light of the $900-plus commanded for penthouses in some of the Pearl District's newest buildings.

Guardian was formed in 1971 and manages more than 200 properties with 500 employees in six states. It specializes in multifamily properties in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

wculverwell@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3415
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/...ml?t=printable
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  #54  
Old Posted Apr 28, 2006, 7:12 PM
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Hoyt Street Properties hopes to build 8 more towers

Pioneering developer keeps at it
Hoyt Street Properties bought a rail yard and started a boom, and it’s not done
By RANDALL BARTON Issue date: Fri, Apr 28, 2006
The Tribune Having already reached the Pinnacle — a Pearl District condominium completed by Hoyt Street Properties in 2005 — what remained was for the developers to hit the heights.
They’re doing that with the Metropolitan, which at 225 feet will be the Pearl’s tallest structure to date. It is the latest chapter in a success story begun almost a decade ago when Hoyt Street Properties purchased a former 34-acre rail yard and ignited an urban renaissance.
The 19-story, glass-walled building, designed by John Meadows of BOORA Architects, is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2007. It also ups the ante in amenities offered in the Pearl, with wine lockers, a library for relaxing and entertaining, an exercise room, conference facilities, separate guest rental suites, and a raised outdoor plaza with a fireplace and teahouse.
It took a year to gain city approval for the additional height, achieved by borrowing footage from a 100-foot building that faces Tanner Springs Park and setting back the taller, 225-foot tower to avoid shadowing the park.
Taller buildings make for a more diverse and interesting skyline, Hoyt Street President Tiffany Sweitzer says.
“Instead of one building taking up a whole 40,000-square-foot block, you can do three different things on a block and create more light and air architecturally. There’s a lot of ‘Yeah, but are you making more money?’ You can, but also I think you’re doing something a little more unique with the property as well. If you’re building the Metropolitan on a 12,000-square-foot footprint, you have fewer units to a floor.”
Of the 136 units in the Metropolitan, 97 are sold and an additional 19 are on “developer hold” until the building is finished, at which time they will be offered at market price. Ten of the available units are live-work units — affording owners the opportunity to live or work in the apartment, or both — priced between $479,000 and $640,000. The median price in the building is $650,000 for a 1,486-square-foot, two-bedroom unit with den. The lowest priced unit sold for $370,000, and the most expensive was a penthouse that sold for nearly 10 times that much: $3,445,000.
When Riverstone, the first Pearl condominium offered by Hoyt Street, opened in 1998, a third-floor, 1,915-square-foot apartment sold for $180,500. Prices have risen dramatically since then. The average price per square foot today in the Pearl is $550 versus $200 in ’98, Sweitzer says.
Developers may be making more money than they did eight years ago, but as she points out, construction costs, including the price of steel and other materials, have risen dramatically. Also, buyers have become more sophisticated about condominiums and are demanding finished apartments instead of unfinished lofts, a greater selection of finishes and more amenities.
It isn’t as easy as “if you build it, they will buy,” Sweitzer insists.
“The Metropolitan has all of this open space, and club facilities that you’re not really getting anything for. But you’re selling those amenities. So I thought, ‘Can you ask for more?’ because you’re offering something unique that’s costing a lot more. Let’s say you take that risk, you price those units and you hope that two and a half years from now when the project is completed the market is still there … There’s an incredible amount of risk, and costs are increasing as you’re going. You never know what you’re going to get into.”

‘We’re seeing more babies’

A favorite topic at cocktail parties around town is, Who’s buying these condominiums? Marilyn Andersen, sales manager and principal broker for the Hoyt Realty Group — the sales arm of Hoyt Street Properties — says it is a misconception that buyers in the Pearl are largely empty nesters divesting of possessions.
“A lot of them never had children,” she says. “We get people who don’t have children who have lived in the neighborhood houses and have had no choice but to live in those houses. Now there’s some other choices.”
On the other hand, “we have a lot of younger couples moving into the neighborhood. Since they’ve moved here they’ve had children and have wanted to stay. So we’re seeing more babies around here.”
Single males purchasing at the Metropolitan outnumber single females by nearly 2-to-1, and there are nearly twice as many single people as couples. The age distribution is about equally distributed among those in their 30s, 40s and 50s. Real estate agents lead the pack in terms of professions, but there also are techies, doctors, engineers, teachers and attorneys.
Sales records show only the buyer’s most recent ZIP code. Thus, those who may have moved here from out of state a few months before their purchase are listed as coming from Portland. Sweitzer believes most of the buyers are Portland residents seeking a front porch that opens onto the city.
“It’s kind of going back to the old neighborhood but in a more efficient way of doing it,” she says. “Your front porch is Piazza Italia over here, and you walk in and Gino knows what dish you want and he knows your name. Or it’s going out to Jamison Square and you know the five dogs and the owners of those dogs and you know they’re going to be there at 5:30 every night and that’s your social hour.”
The first units in the Metropolitan were offered in a lottery. Andersen says they learned from the madhouse sales opening of the Lexis condominiums in 2005 — with people pushing and shoving — that they had to come up with a better system.
“We had so many people that we had established relationships with who had come into our office that wanted to be the first to buy at the Metropolitan,” she says. “Who do we choose? Who gets the first pick? We have a lot of really nice people who live in our buildings already who wanted to live in the Metropolitan. It just came about that we would do the lottery so that we would make it fair.”
Opening night and for a few days afterward prospective buyers were given floor plans and a lottery ballot for specifying their preferred units. Several days later Hoyt Realty Group began drawing names from a pool of 500 prospective buyers.
To prevent people from buying on speculation, Hoyt Realty Group is not selling to investors. Buyers sign a contract agreeing that the unit will be owner occupied for two years. Andersen explains that financing becomes difficult when more than 30 percent of the units in a building are nonowner occupied.

8 more buildings considered

Sweitzer, 39, reckons it will be 10 years before Hoyt Street has completed its development in the Pearl with what probably will be eight more buildings. The company still is in the process of completing its master plan.
“So many people are coming to Portland and asking, ‘How did this work?’ ” she says. “Portland is a unique town, and it’s a process town. You’ve got to go through all the hand-holding and work with your neighborhoods and work with the city to get things done. I think that’s what made this city unique. We formed a partnership with the city of Portland and at the time that was such a strange thing, it hadn’t been done.
“I think the biggest thing that people don’t understand is it’s not just building a building. The parks have to work, and there have to be open spaces here. Transportation has to be thought about and planned. The retail has to work in conjunction with the building. There have to be all the pieces coming together, and they don’t always come together at one time. So when you start to see them working like it is around Jamison now, then you feel like you’ve accomplished something.
“I feel very good when the lights come on in a building because you know it’s taken three years to get there,” she says. “You see people start to move in, and you know you’re a part of someone else’s life. That’s a big deal.”
randallbarton@portlandtribune.com
http://www.portlandtribune.com/pearl06/index.html
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Old Posted Apr 28, 2006, 7:13 PM
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To your right is an image of Block 19, evidence that the development in the Pearl is far from finished. Ground will be broken this summer for a building that will be named the Encore, and sales will start in the fall. The 15-story building will have 176 units, including town homes with large garden areas targeted at families.

Over the past few decades, many other decaying industrial areas have been rejuvenated in American cities as citizens have realized an appreciation of historic preservation. But the planners of the Pearl District have achieved something remarkable. It.s not just a tourist attraction filled with chain stores and crowded businesses selling .I (heart) Portland. knickknacks.

It's a neighborhood where real Portlanders live, work, shop, eat and play. This special pullout section of the Portland Tribune features stories that reflect on how the Pearl has evolved as well as stories about what.s yet to come . a new arts center, a primo jazz club.

Other pieces should help residents and visitors alike enjoy the neighborhood, whether they.re looking for a cooking class, athletic wear or dog treats, or simply taking a stroll. The map on page 20 will help guide the exploration.
http://www.portlandtribune.com/pearl06/index.html
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Old Posted May 1, 2006, 4:57 PM
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The Pearl District Is A Model For Urban Developments
05/01/2006


The revitalization of Portland’s Pearl District into one of the nation’s most distinctive urban neighborhoods has long been on the “must see list” for developers, architects, city planners and elected officials from communities throughout the U.S.

This May the Pearl District will once again be the centerpiece of a three-day Portland area visit by a 50-member delegation from Kansas City, MO. According to Stan Parson, Kansas City Home Builder Association’s Special Projects Coordinator, the delegation wants to see first hand why Portland’s urban developments are so successful.

Hoyt Street Properties (HSP), the Pearl District’s largest developer, will host the delegation on Wednesday May 18 at the EcoTrust building.

HSP’s Sue Miller, Vice President/Special Projects, who will brief the Kansas City delegation, notes that the group is one of many who have come to Portland from as far away as Florida, Texas, Japan and Hawaii.

According to Miller “the delegations have come to learn how we have created a strong public-private partnership in Portland that has resulted in a vibrant city core and the Pearl’s distinctive mixed-use urban community with all the amenities of public transportation, unique housing, parks and pedestrian friendly space.”
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Old Posted May 1, 2006, 5:19 PM
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I would pay money to see the faces of the people in these delegations when they realize how badly their own cities suck ass.
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Old Posted May 1, 2006, 5:23 PM
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Now, now be nice zilfondel. They are coming here to learn.
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Old Posted May 1, 2006, 6:35 PM
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Daisy Kingdom could bloom again
Planned galleries may turn historic building into a new art destination
By JOSEPH GALLIVAN Issue date: Fri, Apr 28, 2006
The Tribune

It’s only 395 paces across the park from the old Daisy Kingdom store at Northwest Davis Street and Eighth Avenue to PDX Contemporary Art at Northwest Ninth and Flanders. But if PDX is the new hub for fine art on Ninth, Daisy Kingdom is the new frontier. While the North Park Blocks may form a psychological barrier between the Pearl and Old Town, real estate developer Jim Winkler is gambling that the distance won’t be too much for art lovers.


Starting next January, the building that formerly housed the fabric store Daisy Kingdom and the adjoining Lombard Automobile Buildings will be the new home for several art galleries: the Contemporary Crafts Museum and Gallery, a new gallery by Charles A. Hartman (formerly of San Francisco), Blue Sky Gallery, Froelick Gallery and a second location for Augen Gallery. Winkler also sees an opportunity for a food venue.

“It’s a step forward in the maturation of the galleries and the creation of an art district,” Winkler says. “You can see most of the good galleries in Portland within a few blocks. My hope is that when someone checks in at the Heathman Hotel, the Lucia or the Custom House (when it’s reopened), first they’ll go see the Portland Art Museum, then they’ll ask the concierge, ‘Where can I see good local art?’ ”

He hopes the area will become a mini version of Chelsea in New York, or be like Bergamot Station, a former trolley station in Santa Monica, Calif.

The Daisy Kingdom side of the building is in better shape than the side that faces Broadway, but both need a lot of work. Winkler says renovating the building, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in January, is not the obvious thing to do. He could have made more money knocking it down and building a 350-foot-high condo. But he says his plan will “accelerate the redevelopment of Old Town by tying into what’s going on at Everett Station Lofts, Butters Gallery and the stuff David Gold is trying to do with the Goldsmith block” (i.e., the Portland Art Center).

Next door, Chicago-based developer Keith Pochter hopes to turn the historic Custom House into a hotel by the summer of 2007.

“The Pearl’s pretty much done in terms of commitments,” Pochter says. “But I believe Old Town-Chinatown will be one of the most valuable districts in Portland, with the light-rail extension” planned along the bus mall to Union Station.

Winkler thinks that when gallerists own their space and don’t have to worry about rents going up, they can be more adventurous. “They can be more gutsy, more innovative, take on more artists, show young artists, or bring someone in at a higher price point than has been seen in Portland.”

The whole structure will be called the DeSoto Building, since it was home to one of the first car dealerships in Oregon. “Historically, it’s part of the transition from the buggy to the powered vehicle,” he says. It has an automotive elevator and a faded painted sign on the south wall advertising Plymouth and DeSoto, which by law must be preserved, not covered up or even repainted.

As with the Portland Center Stage’s renovation of the armory a few blocks west, the rehab is radical — starting with asbestos and lead paint removal, then a seismic upgrade, new glass, skylights and a new lobby. “A rational economic person would knock down this turkey!” Winkler says.

The firm LRS Architects is moving its operation to the third floor. This open space runs for a half-block. Winkler rates it one of the best in Portland.

There’s also a fourth-floor commercial condominium available. He’s considered moving his office there (from 210 S.W. Morrison St., another historic building he restored) but says he probably won’t. “I’m a peculiar person. I’ve had one wife, I keep cars for a long time, I have the same friends. …”

If you need proof that the soft-spoken, immaculately groomed Winkler is detail-oriented, consider his brick mansion he renovated on Southwest Park Place (it’s also on the National Register of Historic Places). In February, vandals threw eggs at the house and his vehicles. Winkler was soon up a ladder trying to clean it, an almost impossible task. Now he’s paying to have the brickwork detailed by experts, as well as having three of his cars repainted.

While he’s certainly in this venture for profit, he stresses what everyone knows about the arts in Portland: They haven’t made anyone rich. Winkler also has more than 100 pieces of art on his office walls and is a board member at the Portland Art Museum, so he’s put his money where his mouth is before. With this project, he ups the ante.

“Part of the strategy was to take advantage of making the building historic and passing through some of the rehabilitation tax credits to the galleries,” he says. “Normally I’d keep that — I wouldn’t give away one or two million dollars.”

But building material costs have been going up since Hurricane Katrina —at one point, he says, the price of plastic piping was going up 25 percent a week. Whether nonprofits and small private galleries still will be able to afford the place by the time it’s finished remains a worry. In March, parties such as Charles Hartman were still applying for funding.

Finally, Winkler has plans for a west-facing, 3,000-square-foot deck on the roof for events and parties, with an eye-level view of the treetops. “That’s one of my favorite views, where you feel you’re floating at tree height.” Even for this, Winkler has an ambitious analogy. He compares it not only to the South Park Blocks as seen from the Trustee Room at the Portland Art Museum, but to views of New York’s Central Park.

josephgallivan@portlandtribune.com

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He could have made more money knocking it down and building a 350-foot-high condo.
damn!
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Old Posted May 1, 2006, 6:37 PM
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Daisy Kingdom could bloom again
Planned galleries may turn historic building into a new art destination
By JOSEPH GALLIVAN Issue date: Fri, Apr 28, 2006
The Tribune

It’s only 395 paces across the park from the old Daisy Kingdom store at Northwest Davis Street and Eighth Avenue to PDX Contemporary Art at Northwest Ninth and Flanders. But if PDX is the new hub for fine art on Ninth, Daisy Kingdom is the new frontier. While the North Park Blocks may form a psychological barrier between the Pearl and Old Town, real estate developer Jim Winkler is gambling that the distance won’t be too much for art lovers.


Starting next January, the building that formerly housed the fabric store Daisy Kingdom and the adjoining Lombard Automobile Buildings will be the new home for several art galleries: the Contemporary Crafts Museum and Gallery, a new gallery by Charles A. Hartman (formerly of San Francisco), Blue Sky Gallery, Froelick Gallery and a second location for Augen Gallery. Winkler also sees an opportunity for a food venue.

“It’s a step forward in the maturation of the galleries and the creation of an art district,” Winkler says. “You can see most of the good galleries in Portland within a few blocks. My hope is that when someone checks in at the Heathman Hotel, the Lucia or the Custom House (when it’s reopened), first they’ll go see the Portland Art Museum, then they’ll ask the concierge, ‘Where can I see good local art?’ ”

He hopes the area will become a mini version of Chelsea in New York, or be like Bergamot Station, a former trolley station in Santa Monica, Calif.

The Daisy Kingdom side of the building is in better shape than the side that faces Broadway, but both need a lot of work. Winkler says renovating the building, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in January, is not the obvious thing to do. He could have made more money knocking it down and building a 350-foot-high condo. But he says his plan will “accelerate the redevelopment of Old Town by tying into what’s going on at Everett Station Lofts, Butters Gallery and the stuff David Gold is trying to do with the Goldsmith block” (i.e., the Portland Art Center).

Next door, Chicago-based developer Keith Pochter hopes to turn the historic Custom House into a hotel by the summer of 2007.

“The Pearl’s pretty much done in terms of commitments,” Pochter says. “But I believe Old Town-Chinatown will be one of the most valuable districts in Portland, with the light-rail extension” planned along the bus mall to Union Station.

Winkler thinks that when gallerists own their space and don’t have to worry about rents going up, they can be more adventurous. “They can be more gutsy, more innovative, take on more artists, show young artists, or bring someone in at a higher price point than has been seen in Portland.”

The whole structure will be called the DeSoto Building, since it was home to one of the first car dealerships in Oregon. “Historically, it’s part of the transition from the buggy to the powered vehicle,” he says. It has an automotive elevator and a faded painted sign on the south wall advertising Plymouth and DeSoto, which by law must be preserved, not covered up or even repainted.

As with the Portland Center Stage’s renovation of the armory a few blocks west, the rehab is radical — starting with asbestos and lead paint removal, then a seismic upgrade, new glass, skylights and a new lobby. “A rational economic person would knock down this turkey!” Winkler says.

The firm LRS Architects is moving its operation to the third floor. This open space runs for a half-block. Winkler rates it one of the best in Portland.

There’s also a fourth-floor commercial condominium available. He’s considered moving his office there (from 210 S.W. Morrison St., another historic building he restored) but says he probably won’t. “I’m a peculiar person. I’ve had one wife, I keep cars for a long time, I have the same friends. …”

If you need proof that the soft-spoken, immaculately groomed Winkler is detail-oriented, consider his brick mansion he renovated on Southwest Park Place (it’s also on the National Register of Historic Places). In February, vandals threw eggs at the house and his vehicles. Winkler was soon up a ladder trying to clean it, an almost impossible task. Now he’s paying to have the brickwork detailed by experts, as well as having three of his cars repainted.

While he’s certainly in this venture for profit, he stresses what everyone knows about the arts in Portland: They haven’t made anyone rich. Winkler also has more than 100 pieces of art on his office walls and is a board member at the Portland Art Museum, so he’s put his money where his mouth is before. With this project, he ups the ante.

“Part of the strategy was to take advantage of making the building historic and passing through some of the rehabilitation tax credits to the galleries,” he says. “Normally I’d keep that — I wouldn’t give away one or two million dollars.”

But building material costs have been going up since Hurricane Katrina —at one point, he says, the price of plastic piping was going up 25 percent a week. Whether nonprofits and small private galleries still will be able to afford the place by the time it’s finished remains a worry. In March, parties such as Charles Hartman were still applying for funding.

Finally, Winkler has plans for a west-facing, 3,000-square-foot deck on the roof for events and parties, with an eye-level view of the treetops. “That’s one of my favorite views, where you feel you’re floating at tree height.” Even for this, Winkler has an ambitious analogy. He compares it not only to the South Park Blocks as seen from the Trustee Room at the Portland Art Museum, but to views of New York’s Central Park.

josephgallivan@portlandtribune.com
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