Jennifer Shuch, an urban planning expert in Portland, is happy with the improvements she is witnessing in her neighborhood of Concordia, particularly the new multi-family housing that was only recently permitted.
The change is best illustrated by two new developments next to her, each with six all-electric townhome-style condominiums on a corner property where a single-family home once stood.
Energy-efficient homes allow more people to take advantage of the community’s advantages, according to Shuch, a board member of Portland: Neighbors Welcome, an organization that promotes secure, stable, and affordable housing. She has lived in the neighborhood for almost eight years.
“New infill projects help to support the small local businesses we all love and make the community more vibrant and diverse,” she said. Concordia Commonson on a Saturday morning is only one example.
Concordia was chosen as the location for the first affordable and Net-Zero condo developments by the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund and the nonprofit Proud Ground, which supports less expensive houses.
Condos with less than 1,000 square feet of living space should continue to have minimal running expenses, and nine of the 12 residences will be sold to first-time buyers making less than 80% of the typical family income.
The rooftop PV solar system on the nine first-time buyer residences is large enough to offset the annual electricity expenditure. In addition, all 12 of the new condos have double-pane windows, fully insulated walls and roofs, heat pumps, and other energy-saving features.
Another first: if half of them are reasonably priced, these are the first six-plexes constructed on single-family lots, which Portland’s 2022 Residential Infill Project has recently permitted. The Oregon legislature passed House Bill 2001 in 2019 to address the state’s chronic housing shortage, and this is one instance of infill housing that is now authorized statewide.
Advocates claim that building infill housing units in an existing area allows more people to live close to places of employment, shopping malls, and transit corridors while also utilizing the facilities and services already in place, such as roads, sewers, and schools.
“Neighbors have been curious about construction on that corner, but I’ve heard nothing but positive comments about the new addition to the block,” said Mike Westling, who lives next to the new Concordia developments and watched the progress of one structure from his front porch.
Like other new developments, several locals were concerned that the density would lead to parking problems and a reduction in trees, gardens, and animal habitats. When windows on one or two stories overlook a neighbor’s home or backyard, privacy may be violated.
Shuch stated, “I live in a duplex across from an apartment building, but I have heard the privacy concerns some people in the neighborhood have.” I’ve always wanted to live on a block like mine, where neighbors know one another and support one another.
The Portland planner Morgan Tracy, who oversaw the Residential Infill Project (RIP) and the upgrade known as RIP2, asked local residents for their opinions on code modifications.
During our intensive public outreach, we frequently heard concerns about the demolition of tiny homes and their replacement by a single, huge, expensive home, Tracy told The Oregonian/OregonLive. Portland’s affordability and housing shortage issues are not resolved by this method.
According to him, RIP instead permits new middle-class housing types in single-family zones with building size restrictions, opening the door for a number of smaller homes at more affordable prices. As a result, Portland’s wonderful neighborhoods will be accessible to more households.
As long as half of the apartments are affordable and the building is two stories high rather than three, Portland permits six-plexes to have greater building footprints than would normally be permitted in residential (R5) zones.
In order to make the side-by-side, attached Concordia condos blend in better with the other two-story residences in the neighborhood, Eli Spevak of Orange Splot in Northeast Portland partnered with Proud Ground to construct the project, he said.
On a 50-by-100-foot area where a home had long since been demolished, sits the University Row neighborhood at Northeast 27th Avenue and Northeast Holman Street. Along the corner lot’s two frontages, mature trees were kept intact.
There are two authorized bikeways at the crossroads, and the University of Oregon’s Northeast Portland campus is across the street.
“It’s great to have energy coming back into the neighborhood from the University of Oregon and small infill projects like this,” observed neighbor Westling.
The University Row residences provide private front and rear yards, 950 square feet of living space, and a variety of two- and three-bedroom layouts.
Families have moved in and half of the houses have sold, Spevak told The Oregonian/OregonLive.
According to Spevak, there are still two houses available for first-time homeowners who are eligible for Proud Ground grants for $285,000, and one more is up for sale at the going rate of $394,000.
Spevak demolished a dilapidated house at Northeast 36th Avenue and Northeast Alberta Court to make way for the second community, Pollination Station.
The long-standing Bridgetown Bees beekeeping enterprise across the street served as the inspiration for the Pollination Station moniker, and plants were chosen for the landscape to encourage bees, butterflies, birds, and other pollinators.
In her Concordia neighborhood, Jennifer Shuch strolls past brand-new Pollination Station condominiums with her senior pit dog mix, Obadiah.Story Robert
The attached, two-story condos at Pollination Station are approximately $285,000. They are 976 square feet in size.
In order to keep the inexpensive Proud Groundhomes affordable for the next buyer, buyers must meet income standards ($66,100 for a household of one to $102,000 for a family of five) and agree to cap their profit at 25% if they sell the property.
“Just before Christmas break, we listed the six townhomes in Pollination Station,” Spevak recalled. There will be four remaining at that time because one is already in escrow and we anticipate another offer the following week.
Wheelchair users and those using other mobility aids can access the sidewalk along Northeast 36th Avenue and the corner ramps. According to Spevak, two of the houses have a completely accessible ground floor restroom and a no-step entry, as required by zoning.
Every house has a side yard or private patio that is fenced. There are three bedrooms inside, one of which is located at the front of the ground floor and could be used as a home office.
Spevak has been constructing what he refers to as community-based housing in North and Northeast Portland for twenty years. According to the owner of Orange Splot, a tiny development company, he is reimagining traditional neighborhoods.
Spevak is aforward-thinking developer, nationally recognized as an energy advocate who produces sustainable housing to reduce the middle-income housing crisis. Locations are selected near work hubs, public transit routes, bike corridors and other ways to help residents not be reliant on cars.
His developments are also distinctive in their appearance. He selects bold paint colors like yellow that break through the gray skies and installs outdoor art.
Each of these new townhomes has a custom art panel over the main entry.
At University Row, aluminum art panels inspired by Oregon ecosystems were created byDallas A. Swindle IV. The panels depict a coastal, mountain, prairie, conifer forest, slough scene or the Columbia Gorge and are arranged on the building from west-to-east, naturally, said Spevak.
At Pollination Station, each panel reflects a pollinator-plant pairing.
The homes have kitchen quartz countertops, tile backsplashes and stainless-steel appliances, including a top-line Miele dishwasher and LG induction range.
Polyphon Architecture and Designdesigned the two communities, and brothers Simon and Rion Lyle ofBorn and Raised Constructionin Southeast Portland were the general contractors for both projects.
Minority-owned companies with specialized expertise installed heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems as well as siding, insulation, drywall and fencing, and did the concrete flatwork and painting.
Woman-owned subcontractors performed excavation, electrical and roofing work, said Spevak. A Portland Clean Energy Fund priority is to work with minority- and woman-owned subcontractors, he said.
The homes received a 10 out of 10Home Energy Scoreand the locations have a high score on walkability, biking and bus access.
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Janet Eastman writes on trends and design. You can follow her on X@janeteastman and contact her at 503-294-4072 and [email protected].
