Four Stories, 30 Units May Replace 1906 Sellwood Home

PORTLAND, Ore. – The city has received an early assistance application for development on property home to a 109-year-old house in the Sellwood neighborhood of Southeast Portland.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

The house, built in 1906 at 7805 SE 13th Ave., is 1,924 square feet and sits on a 5,000-square-foot lot. City records list the house as having both residential and commercial use.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

It was home to Shabby Nest Antiques until Feb. 28, reported the Sellwood Bee, at which time the business closed due to the sale of the property to developers.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

On March 11 the city received an application for early assistance on a four-story mixed-use complex with 30 residential units on the upper three floors and businesses, a restaurant and “possible parking” on the first floor.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

The property is located within a Storefront Commercial zone which, according to the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, “is intended to preserve and enhance older commercial areas that have a storefront character. The zone intends that new development in these areas will be compatible with this desired character.”

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

City and county records still list Richard and Jennifer Richter as the owners of the property, showing that they have owned it since a sale in 1999 for $340,000. That sale appears to have included the lot to the south, now in use as a parking lot and also owned by the Richters. The recent sale has yet to be recorded by the city and the county, but it seems likely it will include both the properties for a total of 10,000 square feet.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

The applicant on the early assistance application is Aaron Clark of Lenity Architecture, registered in Salem.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

The permit does not state whether the 1906 house will be demolished for the new development. The proposed size of the new structure suggests it is a likely scenario.

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle

Photo credit: Portland Chronicle