Montavilla town coalesced from the surrounding farm community in the 1890’s. Not too long after, residents and Portlanders sought annexation of the successful town. Portland voted to annex Montavilla into the city June of 1906. Since that time, the community continued to experience residential and business successes as a Portland neighborhood.
Change of Ownership at Bipartisan
This week, the original owners of the Bipartisan Cafe sold the 18-year-old landmark shop to their former employee Josh Pangelinan. Hobie Bender and Peter Emerson opened the coffee house and pie spot at 7901 SE Stark Street on January 18th, 2005. The corner eatery helped launch the century-old downtown main street’s resurrection, defining Montavilla, and has served…
SE Yamhill Sinkhole
SE Yamhill Street is closed from SE 76th Avenue to SE 73rd Avenue due to a sinkhole. People began reporting the collapse of the road surface on Friday, May 12th. The sidewalks remain open to pedestrians. A significant section of the street is fenced off to keep people away from the unsafe area. According to…
Art Explores Local Japanese American History
This Friday, May 5th, people are invited to attend the Furin Project Symposium at Portland Community College’s (PCC) SE Campus. Attendees will see the culmination of a year-long community art project led by artist Midori Hirose and learn more about a project that aims to bridge the Japanese farming history of Southeast Portland with its modern diversity and culture.…
Tub and Tan Building for Sale
On January 4th, Tub and Tan closed its doors after failing to resolve a conflict with the property management company Dinihanian LLC. On March 28th, Tub and Tan’s owner abandoned reopening plans and announced online that he could not continue operations under current conditions. Now, the building’s owners have the 5,000-square-foot property listed for sale. The adjacent 5,488-square-foot…
Spencers Appliances Closing after 4 Decades
Spencer’s Appliances at 7115 NE Glisan Street will permanently close its doors on February 1st after forty years of serving the community. The new and used appliance store’s owner plans to retire, renting out the three commercial buildings on NE Glisan Street to the next generation of businesses. Several employees have formed a new company and will…
Low-Carbon Architecture Firm Opens Glisan Office
After a multi-year renovation of the Art Deco office at 7631 NE Glisan Street, Harka Architecture has fully relocated to its new home. Renovation work on this compact building rescued a Montavilla architectural icon and created a functional showpiece for low-carbon construction. Harka’s founder, Patrick Donaldson, purchased this property for his architectural firm in 2019 after his sublease…
1909 Storefront for Sale on NE Glisan
The corner commercial property at 7341 NE Glisan Street is for sale. Since 1909, this 1,728-square-foot single-story structure has housed many grocery stores. Although changing hands often, the shop continued to sell food for 40 years. In those early days, most business operators lived on the property in attached housing. Based on the real estate listing,…
Massive I84 and 82nd Ave Property for Sale
An acre of Commercial Mixed Use real estate at 1411 NE 82nd Avenue recently became available on Montavilla’s northern edge. The lot, adjacent to Interstate 84, is the current home to Eastern Cathay restaurant and is the former birthplace of the Elmer’s Pancake House franchise. The listing agent, Adrian Chu of Specialty Real Estate Group, is positioning this property as…
SE Yamhill Vacant Lot for Sale
The new owners of a vacant lot east of 8505 SE Yamhill Street recently placed it on the market after selling the neighboring single-family residence. Ground Breakers Construction & Development purchased the 1923-era home and lot in April of 2022, reselling the home two months later. The vacant lot once held a five-room “modern bungalow” built in…
1905 House Deconstruction on NE Glisan
The new owner of 7132 NE Glisan Street intends to deconstruct the house and detached shed to make way for a future housing development. DEZ Development bought the corner lot in late May and applied for a demolition permit earlier this month. Designers are currently working on plans for the replacement housing coming to this site. When…
7 Townhomes Proposed on NE 73rd near Glisan
Last week, the new owners of 432 NE 73rd Avenue submitted building permit applications to construct seven new townhomes on the property. This standard 50-foot wide lot abuts an apartment building to its rear and a parking lot to the north. The new residences will replace the 1924-era single-family home, garage, and shed on the site. Each…
Remembering Errol Carlson
On June 17th, Errol Carlson passed away while staying near his family in Washington State. One year ago, on June 18th, Carlson’s partner Mel Hafsos passed away after a brief illness. Mel Hafsos and Errol Carlson owned Taylor Court Grocery on SE 80th Avenue for 25 years. During that time, the pair lived together in a nearby…
Demolition on NE Holladay Street
In March, Riverside Carpentry purchased 8225 NE Holladay Street and now plans to demolish the 100-year-old single-family residence. A second demolition permit seeks to remove the detached garage and shed simultaneously. The property is adjacent to the Don Pedro Mexican Food restaurant on 82nd Avenue and outside the residential section of Portland’s Comprehensive Plan Map. Consequentially, the permits are not subject to a 35-Day Demolition Delay.…
Deconstruction of 1900 Era House on NE 75th
The new owners of 319 NE 75th Avenue recently filed for a demolition permit to deconstruct the 122-year-old home. The dwelling retained some of its original design through several remodels but has suffered from neglect more recently. In March of this year, Everett Custom Homes bought the property and requested permission to clear the land the following month. The permit application…
SE Stark Commercial Building for Sale
The owner of 8502-8504 SE Stark Street recently listed the property for sale. The multi-story building currently houses Unicorn Jiu Jitsu, Sanctuary Tattoo & Piercing, and one other tenant. Businesses in the building likely will remain at the location beyond the building’s sale. The property contains two attached structures. A previous owner completed construction on the street-facing two-story building…
Sunny 82nd Market Closes
Sunny 82nd Market, located at 944 NE 82nd Avenue, closed this week, ending a long history of food sales at this site. Since its construction in 1926, the single-story shopfront supplied highway travelers and area residents with groceries for almost 100 years. Originally constructed as a storefront with an attached house in the rear, the building…
Two Townhomes Join 1925 House
The new owners of a 1925 era home at 400 NE 91st Avenue recently demolished a detached garage on the property, making way for two new townhomes. The 100-foot by 100-foot wide lot is across NE 91st Avenue from Columbia Christian School and abutting the campus’s northeast parking lot. Crews will remodel the original home during the site’s redevelopment. The 1,328…
La Osita PDX Opening in Taylor Ct Grocery Building
Last Thursday, Elizabeth Guerrero and David Doyle finalized their purchase of the historic Taylor Court Grocery property. The pair own the La Osita PDX food cart located on 122nd Avenue near Market street. After renovating their newly acquired storefront at 1135 SE 80th Avenue, they will sell the cart and relocate their Mexican restaurant and coffee house to…
Pawnshop Closes on 82nd Ave
The pawn shop located at 933 NE 82nd Avenue closed its doors and boarded up the windows this month. The family-owned business has operated the shop along 82nd Avenue since buying the property in 1996. Before that, it was the motorcycle destination of the area. Developers constructed the single-story storefront in 1961 for a Matchless Motorcycle dealership. During the…
Union Rose Moving Locations on Stark
Union Rose is moving down the street to a new storefront at 8029 SE Stark Street. Currently, they are located a block east on the same side of Stark Street. The larger space will allow for more onsite manufacturing of women’s clothing and expanded gift-items available in the shop. Owner Rita Hudson-Evalt was excited to find a…
Vintage Store in Vintage Building
Tigersden Vintage recently moved into the storefront at 7035 NE Glisan Street. The vintage store has over five years of experience selling online with Etsy, eBay, and now a Shopify store. This year they opened the Montavilla shop on Glisan and are currently displaying merchandise street-side. Tigersden Vintage describes itself as a curated clothing and home goods…
Citrine Bloom on Glisan
Citrine Bloom recently relocated to 7114 NE Glisan Street in Montavilla. The plant store moved from its original location at 4136 SE 42nd Ave in August. Making plants affordable, accessible, and manageable for all people is a core goal for the shop’s owner. Jessica Pierce created Citrine Bloom with the principle values of community support and the joy…
William Miller Building on Glisan
The building at 7815 NE Glisan Street does not bear the name of its original owner. However, for over a quarter-century, William Miller’s building stood at this location. Miller built several buildings for his plumbing business on the property, and his store would have been a landmark on Glisan. The recorded history of the building begins in…
Drug Store of Indeterminate Age
Located at 7935 NE Glisan Street is the unused half of the Hanoi Kitchen building. The city of Portland documents indicates the whole structure dates to a 1955 development. However, that date only represents the western single-story half of the building. The two-story eastern portion of the building dates back much further. Originally the building at the corner of…
Curb Ramp Work at SE 91st and Burnside
UPDATE – New curb ramps are completed at SE 91st Ave and E Burnside Frontage Road. Update from October 11th, 2020. UPDATE – New curb ramps are under construction at SE 91st Ave and E Burnside Frontage Road. The old curbs and sidewalk are now removed. The ground is prepared with crushed rock for reconstruction.…
Historic Factory for Sale
The often-overlooked office building at 7305 NE Glisan Street is available to buy or lease. Originally constructed in 1907, many businesses have repurposed this location to serve their needs. Contrary to its appearance today, this location began as a manufacturing hub and home to early Montavilla industry. The Standard Broom Co. commissioned the building to house its broom…
Forgotten Parking Lot
The long-unused parking lot at 7601 SE Division Street remains on the market. After selling to investors in 2015, the owner attempted several housing projects on the site. None of those seem to have moved past planning, and the property remains for sale. Originally this location had an address of 1927 Division Street before the renumbering of Portland streets.…
Tabor Volvo Service on Glisan
Upgrades are underway at the Volvo service shop located at 6901 NE Glisan Street. Alamo Automotive has operated from this location for 20 years. With the former owner Mitch Wilson’s retirement, the new owner is busy putting his mark on the business. Rebranded as Tabor Volvo Service, Brandon Cox has taken the reins of the repair shop…
Art Deco Restoration
Construction is underway at the small Art Deco building located at 7631 NE Glisan Street. Restoration plans for this building started back at the beginning of 2020, but past permit issues caused work delays. Constructed in 1940 as a dentist’s office, it’s the loan example of Art Deco architecture in the area. “The original owner was…
1894 Storefront for Lease
The storefront, most recently occupied by H&R Block, is now for lease. Located at 8304 SE Stark Street, it offers 1,754 square feet of office or retail space. Although being the full width of the lot, it is a relatively small building. Despite its more modern appearance, a portion of this structure dates back to 1894. Original addressed…
1911 Storefront for Lease
A handwritten sign in the window of 6900 NE Glisan Street advertises that the storefront is for lease. This corner building is looking for its next business to house, just as it has for over 100 years. First built in 1911 for W. Heinen, the structure’s design created a store on the first floor and a dwelling…
Town Storefront for Sale
7850 SE Stark Street is listed for sale by its owner, who operates Electronic Claims Services from this location. Property listings for Stark Street storefronts are uncommon, particularly in buildings centrally located in Montavilla Town. Constructed in 1946, it was home to bicycle stores for much of its early life. First as Lawrence H. Hook’s Hook Cycle Shop, and later as Mt.…
1890 Cornerstone Building Revived
The transformation of 7901 NE Glisan Street from a neglected structure, to an impressive multi-use building, is nearing completion. Constructed in 1890, it has been updated many times. However, this most recent project seeks to rebuild and unify the building like never before. With exterior construction nearing completion, the owner expects to be ready for…
New Business in Historic Building
KB Cabinets opened a new showroom in the historic building located at 206 NE 80th Ave. This new location represents an expansion of a 40-year-old family business. Carol Swanson-Petterson and her husband, Ross Petterson, operate KB Cabinets in the Bay Area of California. KB Cabinets’ new Portland location is run by their daughter-in-law, Maria Petterson. KB Cabinets sells cabinetry and…
New Face for 1928 Glisan Building
The slender building at 7243 NE Glisan Street, opened as a Snow Cap Dairy in the mid 1920’s. The original address was 1857 E. Glisan and it received its final plumbing inspection October 8th 1925. However, Portland maps lists its occupancy date as 1928. In the Mid 1940’s it was Dainty Diaper Service. Over the…
Montavilla News 