The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) will demolish a 1951-era single-family residence to build a new segment of NE Davis Street. The city purchased the 700-square-foot single-story home at 205 NE 100th Avenue and three other vacant lots to construct a two-block street between NE 97th and 100th Avenues. This work is part of a Local Improvement District (LID) set to rebuild roads and add sidewalks ahead of redevelopment in the Gateway District.
The LID work will take place in two phases beginning in Fall 2024. Most improvements will occur on NE 97th Avenue north of E Burnside Street. Crews will repave the street and add sidewalks to this currently curbless segment of roadway. Cement masons will install Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant curb ramps at each new intersection, and lighting crews will install new street lights along the updated sections of NE 97th Avenue, NE Couch Street, and NE Davis Street. During the first construction phase, PBOT will build one block of NE Davis Street from NE 97th to 99th Avenue. In Spring 2025, crews will begin the second phase of construction, extending NE Davis Street from NE 99th to 100th Avenue and creating a new one-block segment of NE Couch Street from NE 97th to 99th Avenue.
Funding for the LID comes from adjacent property owners and other government sources. At formation, the total budget was $14,585,083. LID funding accounted for $9,770,408. PBOT provided $2 million from collected System Development Charges and $800,000 from other PBOT budgets. Prosper Portland contributed the remaining $2 million. PBOT paid $2,336,712 for the four lots that will become NE Davis Street. Land left over from those lots not used for road construction will revert to the adjacent property owners.
PBOT will construct these new streets to modern standards with roadways that are 36 feet wide and sidewalks on both sides of the street. The pedestrian area will offer a 6-foot wide through zone and a 4-foot planting strip between the sidewalk and curb. The LID will also create a new marked crosswalk on E Burnside Street across Interstate 205. This crossing will help pedestrians and cyclists travel across E Burnside Street to connect with the I-205 Multiuse Path. BPOT intends to reconstruct the traffic signal at NE 97th Avenue and E Burnside Street, including new crosswalks.
PBOT does not often create new streets in an established neighborhood. Housing developments like those planned for this area often use private driveways and parking lots to grant residents access. Private streetscapes are not always designed with adequate sidewalks and are not open for public use. This extension of these streets will repair the grid and offer Portlanders better east/west access by all modes of travel. The developments within these newly defined blocks will benefit from the new streets, as will everyone traveling through this area. Look for work to begin later this year.
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