Downtown Portland developments

Neighborhood Spotlight: Downtown North

December 20, 2019 | Alyssa Deitz

The city of Portland is amid its biggest development boom since the 1980s, and one area that’s seeing significant change is downtown. In this three-part blog series, we divide the area (south, central, and north) and explore the many exciting real estate projects taking place. Here, we wrap it up with Downtown North.

North Area

The northern part of downtown Portland is a triangular section that lies between the Burnside Bridge and the Morrison Bridge and is bordered to the west by I-405. The area is home to several Portland staples including Huber’s Café, Voodoo Doughnut, Mother’s Bistro, and Powell’s City of Books. In the next few years, several mixed-use properties, hotels, and apartment complexes will be developed in the area and will increase its popularity even more.

“From the West End to creative office buildings on the waterfront, to shopping, to the hotel district on Broadway, this section of downtown has a little bit of everything,” says Melvin Mark broker Paul Andrews. “It is a microcosm of the broader downtown and with all of the new developments it’s slated to become more of a 24-hour neighborhood, which will be exciting.”

Smith Block

Melvin Mark Investors recently acquired the beautiful Smith Block building at 111 SW Naito Parkway. The property was built in 1872 by Joseph Smith and is one of the few surviving cast-iron buildings along Waterfront Park. It was renovated in 2008 and received a full seismic upgrade, custom wood windows, and a multi-floor glass skylight corridor that adds lots of natural light.

Part of the building’s 31,688 square feet of space is occupied by renowned restaurant LeChon; the rest of the building (26,000 square feet) is creative office space that is available for lease across four floors. The space can accommodate an array of configurations, from a single office tenant occupying all vacant space to three tenants subdivided between the floors.

Because of its location, Smith Block offers easy access to major thoroughfares like I-5, I-84, W Burnside, and SW Naito Parkway. It’s also close to several public transportation options as well as restaurants, bars, the downtown shopping district, and other amenities. Best of all, the building provides beautiful views of the Willamette River, Mount Hood, and Mount St. Helens.

If you’re interested in the available space at Smith Block, please contact Tom Becic (licensed in OR) at tbecic@melvinmark.com or 503.546.4513, or Bryn Hokkanen (licensed in OR) at bhokkanen@melvinmark.com or 503.546.4534.

Neighborhood Development

(The downtown north area includes properties east to west from the waterfront to I-405 and north to south from Burnside St. to Alder St.)

As of December 2019, there are ten properties proposed, approved, or under construction and two that were completed in 2018 or 2019.

  • WorldMark by Wyndham Resort (completed 2019)
    • 221 SW Naito Pkwy
    • A 6-story 67,200 square-foot vacation ownership property with 75 units (including condo-style suites) and ground-floor retail space.
  • PAE Living Building (approved)
    • SW 1st & Pine St.
    • A 5-story 58,700 square-foot energy-efficient building with four floors of office space and 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.
    • Fully sustainable with cross-laminated timber, composting toilets, water filtration, solar panels, natural ventilation, and locally sourced materials.
  • 2nd Ave Mixed-Use Property (proposed)
    • 230 SW 2nd Ave
    • A 6-story building with 5 stories of residential apartments for seniors, ground-floor retail space, and below-grade parking.
  • JK Gill Building (under construction)
    • 408 SW 5th Ave
    • A 100,000 SF space that was formally the Multnomah County Health Building and is being redeveloped into creative office space.
  • Block 31 (under construction, completion: 2020)
    • 108 SW 3rd
    • A 6-story building with 130+ apartments (20% will be reserved for lower-income households). It will also feature ground-floor retail space and below-grade parking.
  • Modish Building (proposed)
    • 333 SW Park Ave.
    • Renovation of the 5-story building includes window replacements, new storefront vestibules, a penthouse, and ground-floor commercial space.
  • Moxy Hotel (under construction, completion: 2020)
    • 585 SW 10th Ave
    • $50M development
    • A 12-story, 140’ hotel by Marriott International with 197 rooms.
  • Eleven West (approved)
    • 1116 SW Washington St
    • A 24-story building featuring 222 residential units, 6 floors of office space, 7,816 SF of retail space at ground level, and below-grade parking.
  • Block 216 Tower (under construction, completion: 2023)
    • 900 SW Washington St
    • $600M development
    • A 35-story mixed-use property that will blend a Ritz-Carlton hotel with 250+ rooms, 165,000 SF of office space, 10,000 SF of ground-floor retail space, 135+ luxury condos, and below-grade parking.
  • Fliedner Building (approved, construction expected to start Q1 2020)
    • 1017 SW Washington Street
    • $12M capital investment
    • Redevelopment of the brick-and-beam office building includes a full seismic upgrade, new building systems, an elevator lobby, a new rooftop deck, and bicycle storage.
  • Woodlark House of Welcome (completed 2018)
    • 525 SW Park Ave
    • $30M capital investment
    • A conversion of the Cornelius Hotel and the Woodlark Building into a 150-room hotel.
  • Joyce Hotel (approved)
    • 322 SW 11th
    • A renovation that includes exterior updates, a seismic upgrade, nearly 70 hotel rooms, and ground-floor commercial space.

Other Melvin Mark Properties

At Melvin Mark, we’re happy to own or manage several buildings in the downtown north area. In addition to Smith Block, we lease, own, or manage: