Tag: 9270 NE Glisan

Business Relocating, Transportation

Broadway Cab Moves to NE Glisan

Broadway Cab recently relocated offices and its vehicle yard from NE Emerson Street to the former fueling center at 9270 NE Glisan Street. The site’s proximity to Portland International Airport, Interstates 205 and 84, and its size make it well suited to the transportation-oriented business’s needs.

The nearly century-old Portland cab company purchased the property and moved operations to the site on February 1st. The site previously served as a hub for B4 Transportation after the previous owners removed all refueling equipment from the property. Broadway Cab selected the Montavilla site after an exhaustive two-year search by its new General Manager, Roger Stelmach. The expanded space will assist the company’s regrowth efforts as the traditional taxi industry adjusts to a market upended by app-based ride-hailing services. “Before Uber and Lyft, there were eight cab companies in Portland, and now we’re down to four,” said Stelmach. Ownership brought him in to bolster the taxi company that once employed 400 drivers but had declined substantially in recent years. Stelmach estimates his efforts helped regrow the drive base by 20 to 25 percent. They now employ well over 100 cab operators and offer expanded services. Accessibility-equipped vehicles now account for a sizable segment of Broadway Cab’s fleet, allowing the company to provide medical transport with wheelchair-ramped vans and support people’s mobility needs beyond what other providers may accommodate.

Broadway Cab is actively seeking new drivers, and the company now allows drivers to keep their assigned vehicles at home so drivers no longer have to come to the main yard to start or end a shift. “The only cabs I have here on the property are cabs waiting to be picked up, new cabs for new drivers, or cabs that are being serviced. Drivers these days don’t drop by every morning and pick up the cab,” explained Stelmach. “That [change in procedure] was to compete with Uber and Lyft, and the drivers love it.” That modern taxi vehicle policy should also keep the new location from clogging during shift changes, lessening the impact on local traffic. Although, the facility is well designed for efficient vehicle access with dedicated entry and exit gates, explained Stelmach.

Crews refreshed the office building before Broadway Cab staff moved into the NE Glisan space. However, Roger Stelmach said that besides the office upgrades, the deep lot had most of what they needed, including a large storage yard and shop space for minor vehicle servicing. Most cab repair work happens offsite through the company’s longtime mechanic, Portland Auto Services, which is conveniently located on the same street at 7510 NE Glisan Street.

Eight people regularly work from this NE Glisan Street location, with daytime dispatchers working alongside administrative staff. The company offers 24-hour taxi dispatch anywhere in Portland via the 503-333-3333 phone number. Riders can also book online or use the Broadway Cab mobile phone app. The cab company intends to remove the decommissioned fueling apparatus at the front gates eventually and make other upgrades to their property as they make roots in the neighborhood.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

History, Property Sale

Former Fueling Site for Sale Again

The owners of a 0.8-acre industrial site at 9270 NE Glisan Street listed the property for sale after almost four years of use as a freight transportation yard. This former Associated Petroleum Products distribution facility spans residential and commercial zoning, and any substantial redevelopment would need to conform to new city-designated uses. However, new owners could request conditional use approval for similar logistics operations as allowed today.

Pioneer Oil Company built the facility in 1988, and the family that owned that company still has a stake in the property. In 2020, they entered a real estate transaction directly with a buyer to sell the property. Now, the 350 by 100 foot multi-parcel property is available again. The front 10,000 square foot lot is on NE Glisan Street in a Commercial Mixed Use 1 (CM1) zone, allowing small-scale buildings generally three stories tall. It could support apartments, offices, and retail storefronts. The Residential 2,500 (R2.5) parcels are single-dwelling zones, but newer building codes allow for housing density in these areas, including cottage clusters and fourplexes.

Overhead image from Portland Maps Red lines indicates CM1 Zoning and blue marks a residential R2.5 designation

The mixed-use parcel on NE Glisan Street blocks the residentially zoned properties from access to a city street. However, an overgrown alley extends from E Burnside Street to NE Glisan Street along the property’s eastern edge. That skinny single-lane road was the original East 94th Street North before later development, and Portland City street renumbering shifted that street 150 feet east. During that early time in Portland’s history, people called NE 92nd Place Mabel Street, and these properties were located just outside city limits in Russellville. 9270 NE Glisan Street was addressed as 2264 E. Glisan Street when Russellville Water Company first owned the land. It housed an above-ground steel water tank elevated into the air by a steel support tower. This distribution tank stored 50,000 gallons of water. Russellville Water Company’s board dissolved the organization on December 30th, 1950, and sold its assets to the Russellville Water District.

Sanborn Maps from 1924 showing Russellville Water Co. tower at 9270 NE Glisan St

Current zoning and past uses for petroleum storage may complicate future redevelopment of this site. However, its walkable access to transit on bus or MAX light rail and quick connections to services in the Gateway District make 9270 NE Glisan Street an appealing place for housing construction with varying degrees of density. Interested groups can contact Jordan Fezler with Apex Real Estate Partners.

By

Jacob Loeb

Property Sale

APP Site for Sale or Lease

Associated Petroleum Products (APP) has moved out of their fueling facility at 9270 NE Glisan Street. The property is listed for sale or lease by Keller Williams Realty’s KW Commercial. The large lot is listed for a price of $1,295,000. Despite its diminutive appearance from NE Glisan, it is a long property equivalent to six residential lots.

For sale is a 35,000 SF lot with 31,736 SF of highly sought after partially paved and gravel yard. The property is fully enclosed by cyclone fencing, includes two buildings and environmental completion. The front building (2,400 SF) has three total grade doors, a reception area, three offices, a break room, a restroom, and a 600 SF loft. The back warehouse building (864 SF) has one grade door, a cement floor, and three phase electrical. The front 10,000 SF of the property is zoned mixed use commercial. The back 25,000 SF is zoned residential development, or grandfathered in as a truck yard. – KW Commercial’s listing description –

Although this location is well suited to a similar commercial application, its location would be ideal for a mixed use development. This lot would be a challenge to split into separate properties, as it is missing an access road. NE 93rd Ave does not extend across Glisan. This only leaves the option of maintaining a private access to the other lots. If residential development is destin for this location, a subdivision or apartment complex would be a good solution. Additionally the fronting along NE Glisan would allow for the potential to include retail in the development.