By Don MacGillivray
The goats who live at SE 10th Ave. and Belmont will soon need a new pasture. A full two blocks from SE Belmont to Taylor Streets and SE 10th to 11th Avenues (plus a portion of the block directly east) is transforming into a major endeavor. With thousands of commuters driving by this site daily, it is a likely source of new retail customers.
In 2002, fire destroyed the Italian Monte Carlo Restaurant along with a wholesale produce market. The property was purchased a few years before the fire and the owner has been waiting for the right time to develop it into a sizable project. The proposal is for the complete redevelopment of almost three square blocks along Belmont.
The overall site redevelopment would include 84,000 square feet of retail space, 257 apartment units, and two levels of structured parking. This 92,000 square foot super block is a gateway between downtown and the inner SE neighborhoods.
It is intended to attract 30-40 year olds who want to live close-in surrounded by interesting shops and restaurants.
The owner-developer for the project is Killian Pacific Development and Ankrom Moison Architects are the designers. Preliminary concept drawings show the main block developed with two levels of structured parking, one fully below grade, five distinct buildings providing ground floor retail, and three with three to five stories of housing above.
Currently a grocer and a hardware store will be anchors and there will be many additional smaller shops and services. The east block will include a building with retail at the ground floor and three levels of housing above.
Apartments are planned to be an average size of 800 sq. ft. with rents of $1600/month. In the center of the development will be a public plaza and gathering space thirty feet by two-hundred feet and intended to be an outdoor living room for tenants and customers. The main block also includes internal walkways, stairs and plazas for off-street pedestrian circulation.
Killian Pacific Vice President, Noel Johnson, has presented this proposed development to nineteen community organizations including twice to the Buckman Community Association.
The response has been good, but there are several questions and a few comments. One comment was that the seven story building was too high and it may be possible to reduce it by two stories.
There was much discussion about the width of the sidewalk along Belmont. It is eight and a half feet wide and the city’s recommended width is twelve feet. This will be reconsidered, but it is unclear if it can be changed.
There is much call for a public library in the complex. The original Buckman Library is only two blocks north of the project, but it has been remodeled into private offices while keeping its historic designation.
Buckman Community Association will discuss the project at both their General meeting and the Planning Committee meeting this month. Meetings are at the Multnomah Building, SE Grand and Hawthorne at 7 pm.
The project will need to be finalized in six to eight weeks so it can proceed through a city review process with construction beginning later this year.
An example similar to this development is the Tupelo Alley on N. Mississippi Ave. by Trammell Crow Residentials. While very different in appearance, the project is of similar scale and intent.
Across the street to the northwest, a similar half block development is planned. It will complement the Grand Central Building to the west which is a restored historic building with a small bowling alley and nine retail shops.
The Foresight Development and Real Estate Company own the half block parking lot on SE 9th. The plans are to build a six story mixed-use building this year with retail space on the ground floor and 120 lofts above.
Foresight Development has hired Ankrom Moisan architects to design the project and it is six months away from ground breaking. The Killian and Foresight projects will be a city center for the eastside.
Developer Aaron Jones is planning to build a housing project on a half block at SE 12th Ave. at Taylor St. The Taylor Street Lofts will be a ninety-six unit project of four or five stories. The site was formerly a parking lot across the street to the east of the old Amato bowling alley. SERA Architects are designers of the project.
The caretakers of the goats expect to remove them by the first of February and hope to find a similar urban location where the public can continue to interact with these popular animals.
Further information about the Killian Pacific project contact Mark Walhood, staff planner at Portland Bureau of Development Services.
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