Tag: Montavilla Town

Construction, New Residence

Montavilla 80 Residents Movein

In mid-August, residents began moving into the newly completed Montavilla 80 Apartments at 241 SE 80th Avenue. This three-story, 11-unit multifamily building is the tallest residential building in the surrounding blocks and offers convenient access to the historic Montavilla downtown. The modern-styled building features a double-gabled roof evenly split over conjoined rectangles framing the second and third floors. Designers of this structure worked to create housing density that architecturally responds to the nearby two-story single-family homes while providing a warm home with communal space for residents.

Main floor hallway with Portland posters on display

This apartment building is the first multifamily development over five units for the out-of-state developer. Consequentially, the building avoids the institutional bland features sometimes seen other midsized apartment buildings. The leasing agent, Eseta Taufoou with KJK Properties, explained the property owner wanted a building that reflected Portland through the color pallet he used in public spaces and artwork hanging in the hallways. He chose natural woodgrain cabinetry that reflects the Pacific Northwest character and installed pet-friendly flooring in each unit’s living rooms. Although fitting 11 units on a single lot required designers to use modest floor plans, the owner built the property with stacked laundry facilities in each unit, and designers placed additional storage wherever possible.

Secure bike, storage, and mail room

Residents can reserve secure lockers in a main-level room for extra storage capacity. That room doubles as the building’s mailroom. A keypad-protected external door allows postal workers and delivery people to drop packages in this safe location for added parcel security. Some of the steel cages in the room include wall-mounted bike hangers, making this one of the most secure communal bike storage rooms in the area. Quality bike parking is ideal for this apartment building located on the new 70s Greenway that extends along 80th Avenue as a priority pathway for pedestrians and cyclists.

The three ground-floor units have external entrances accessed from each side of the building, with one having additional access to the internal hallway. Ground units are accessible for people with special mobility needs, and under-sink cabinet doors are removable for wheelchair access. The front door opens onto a hallway that leads halfway back to a staircase used by residents of the upper levels. The second and third floors share a similar floor plan. Each upper story contains a pair of single-bedroom and a pair of two-bedroom apartments. The top floor units have vaulted ceilings. Each unit has a mini-split heating and air conditioning unit for the main room and Cadet Wall Heaters for bedroom heating.

Eseta Taufoou said that the development team did an excellent job placing windows in places with decent views that avoid looking into neighboring buildings. Many early renters have gravitated to the back units with views looking west. She believes it is primarily to avoid the street view but noted that the church across the street offers free showers and food for the houseless. Taufoou always discloses neighboring land use to potential renters but says most Portlanders looking at the units seem accepting and have not voiced concern.

Building residents can access a shared backyard with seating and a small covered porch. Landscapers will return to plant grass and add string patio lights to the secluded outdoor space. Building trash and recycling are stored in an externally accessible locked room, keeping smells contained and people from picking through containers.

This building is the most recent development taking advantage of the Residential Multi-Dwelling 2 (RM2) zoning near the SE Stark Street commercial corridor. That designation encourages three to four floors of housing built to an urban scale but blending in with smaller-scale zoning. The Montavilla 80 Apartments stand as a prime example of housing density that meets Portland’s goals for efficient land use that also responds to the existing built environment. It is next to smaller apartments built decades ago along a street that was once part of Portland’s streetcar network, where this type of density naturally occurred. KJK Properties is running leasing promotions this fall, and Eseta Taufoou hosts reoccurring open house viewings on Saturdays. You can reach her by text or phone at 503-734-7881‬ to schedule a viewing or hear about available units. She speaks English, Spanish, Greek, and Tongan.

Central stairway with mustard colored accent walls and natural light

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Promotion: Help keep independent news accessible to the community. Montavilla News has a Patreon account or you can pay for a full year directly online. We invite those who can contribute to this local news source to consider becoming paid subscriber or sponsor. We will always remain free to read regardless of subscription.

History

Montavilla History Questions Answered: The Montavilla Library

Q – Whatever happened to the Montavilla Branch Library?

A – I’ve often been asked this question. If you go looking for Montavilla’s branch library —as I did— you may have trouble finding it. But —believe it or not— the building still exists.

The Montavilla Branch Library closed in November 1981 because of Multnomah County Libraries’ funding problems. There was an attempt to fund the Montavilla and Lombard branch libraries through a levy, but Portland voters turned it down, forcing those two branches to close.

The Oregon State University Extension Service leased the Montavilla building until 2003. In 2005, the Multnomah County Commission voted to sell the site despite a proposal made by the “Save Montavilla Library” group, which offered to run it as volunteers.

Considering the effort it took to establish Montavilla’s branch library, this was a sad moment in Montavilla’s history. The community efforts that eventually resulted in a branch library date back to 1906. That year, the Multnomah County Library (MCL) opened local reading rooms in several communities, including Montavilla. The MCL would provide books and a librarian for each reading room, but the communities had to supply the room. Montavilla’s mothers and teachers jumped on the opportunity and raised enough funds to rent a space on Stark Street. The Montavilla Reading Room opened in 1907.

Montavilla’s first sub-branch library at SE 422 81st Ave., north of SE Stark St. (Courtesy Multnomah County Library)

In 1911, the MCL upgraded all Portland reading rooms to sub-branch status, meaning communities no longer had to pay for the library space. Wanting a purpose-built library, Montavilla and neighboring Mt. Tabor campaigned for a Carnegie library in Montavilla. The campaign failed, but in November 1912, the City Library Association promised Montavilla a new, permanent branch library. That, too, did not happen. Instead, the Montavilla library moved into the brick building at 422 SE 81st Avenue (now the Miyamoto Sushi restaurant). Needing more space, the branch added the building next door in 1913.

A branch library building had to wait until 1935. It was the middle of the Great Depression, but creative thinking and determination made it happen. In 1934, the Montavilla Kiwanis Club kicked off a campaign for a new branch library. The City of Portland donated the site. The Library Association provided cash. SERA (Oregon’s State Emergency Relief Administration) contributed the labor. Portland architect Herman Brookman designed the building. When the building was completed in late 1934, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts helped to move 5,000 books from the old branch library to the new one at 211 SE 80th Avenue just south of SE Ash Street. With a formal ceremony, the branch library opened on September 3rd, 1935. And the Library Association declared in its 1935 annual report that the Montavilla branch library was the outstanding achievement of the year.

Montavilla Branch Library, 211 SE 80th Ave. (Courtesy Multnomah County Library)

After the Montavilla library closed in 1981, the Oregon State University Extension Service leased it until 2003. Then, the building lay vacant for two years. In 2005, the Multnomah County Commission voted to sell it despite a proposal from the “Save Montavilla Library” group.

Remodeled Montavilla Branch Library, 211 SE 80th Ave. (Jacob Loeb)

The nonprofit Unlimited Choices —a housing rehabilitation service— acquired the property and altered the library building to meet its needs. The library was lifted to make room for a new ground story, and a large dormer was inserted above the entrance door. So, technically, the Montavilla Branch Library building is still there, but the additions make it hidden.

By

Patricia Sanders

This is part of a new segment at Montavilla News called Montavilla History Questions Answered. If you have questions about Montavilla’s past that you’d like answered, local historian Patricia Sanders will investigate your question. Please email your questions to history@montavilla.net and we may feature it alongside Patricia Sanders’ research in a future post on this page.

Food and Drink, New Business

Shorba Arabic Food Cart on SE 80th

On August 27th, the Shorba Arabic food cart opened for business after a weeks-long soft launch period. This uniquely sited cart sits adjacent to an apartment building on the northeast corner of the same block that hosts mainstay neighborhood restaurants, including Yaowarat and Redwood. The cart’s owner, Omer Alshahrabani, and his wife run lunch and dinner service from the sidewalk adjacent eatery at 307 SE 80th Avenue, bringing authentic recipes from Iraq to the Montavilla area.

Alshahrabani is an experienced food service worker who has cooked professionally since 2003. During those years, he developed the culinary skills to meet Portland diners’ various diets with gluten-free, vegan, and vegetarian options. Alshahrabani explained that even with dietary modifications, the recipes remain authentic to his Baghdad-based upbringing, with everything made by the couple from simple base ingredients. “We use quality products and keep everything fresh and authentic,” remarked Alshahrabani.

Unlike a collection of carts at a food cart pod, the business owner situated this eatery by itself at the edge of a commercial street near residences. Alshahrabani said this was an intentional choice that would set his operation apart. “I wanted to be the first one to have a food cart in the area. Since I know the landlord of our apartment, it was easier to make an agreement and get permission. The challenging part was getting approval from the city.” Residents walking by the future cart site watched as the operator gradually readied his eatery for opening in the apartment’s parking lot, with activity building up to a soft launch during the Montavilla Street Fair.

People familiar with Mediterranean menus will find familiar dishes, including a beef saj with seasoned beef shawarma served in a grilled saj flatbread wrap. Guests can also order seasoned beef and chicken over rice or salad. Meat free options include hummus, tzatziki, and falafel in several preparations. The menu also offers a namesake serving of lentil shorba (soup). For a sweet option, people can order baklawa, a dessert similar to Baklava but flavored with cardamom and other slight ingredient differences. Shorba is open daily for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and dinner from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. They are a friendly, family-run business that serves Arabic foods with a wide-reaching appeal.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Promotion: Help keep independent news accessible to the community. Montavilla News has a Patreon account or you can pay for a full year directly online. We invite those who can contribute to this local news source to consider becoming paid subscriber or sponsor. We will always remain free to read regardless of subscription.

New Business, Top 2025

Storied Vintage Opening on SE Stark

On August 21st, Storied Vintage opened its new Montavilla location at 7850 SE Stark Street after relocating from a 1,000-square-foot space at the Brooklyn Mall on NE Sandy Boulevard. This leap into a dedicated storefront reflects three years of business growth for store owner Jana Fulop. The family-run shop is still developing its hours during this soft launch, but Fulop anticipates hosting an official opening in early September.

Store owner Jana Fulop

Jana Fulop grew her furniture restoration career from a 20-year-long hobby that has roots in her childhood. She grew up outside Portland near Mt. Hood, where pre-owned furniture was more abundant and cost-effective than new furniture. That foundational experience and a desire to reduce consumer waste led Fulop on a life-long effort to rescue quality furniture that is difficult to find in contemporary stores. During her downtime from her marketing and interior design profession, Fulop would put on music and restore furniture for private resale or on commission. However, when the pandemic left her without a job, she made the leap to full-time refinished furniture sales. With the encouragement of Fulop’s spouse, the business grew from 100 square foot space to 1,000 square feet.

Not long after the Brooklyn Mall relocated from SE Milwaukie Avenue to NE Sandy Boulevard, curiosity prompted Fulop to look at a dedicated space where she could bring in her own partner creators and grow the company’s offerings. She was interested in the storefront recently vacated by Endure Vintage. However, she soon learned that Flipside Hats was moving into that smaller storefront, making their larger space with a 1,200 square foot showroom available. It was a tough choice to leave the comfort of her current situation and take on a larger, dedicated space. However, the location won them over. “The minute I walked in here, I’m like, ‘Yep, this is my store.’ It just works,” said Fulop. Even in the short time since she opened the doors, it has seemed like the right choice. “It’s been amazing, honestly, and the community has been fantastic. It’s just been really great, you know, some places you don’t get that,” remarked Fulop.

Although furniture and housewares are still arriving in the shop, Fulop has already filled the showroom with reconditioned items and new products that use reclaimed materials. Fulop tries to make sure she has reasonable prices on her items. Thinking back on her upbringing, she hopes people find essential items they can afford in her store alongside the higher-end showpiece furniture on display. The shop features a mix of styles spanning years of durable and creative furniture. “I’m not a purist in the sense that I have to stick to one style. I sell a little bit of everything. I do a lot of mid-century. I carry a lot of antiques and primitive pieces, such as art deco when it’s a good piece,” explained Fulop.

People can also find mixed animal prints on parchment from Whatif Creations. “Jesse is a local Portland artist, and she has all these funky animal prints. She was a social worker working with kids, and she’d draw little things for them to engage with. They would ask, ‘What would happen if you mixed a turtle and a giraffe? What would that look like?’ So she started making these [drawings], and then it turned into a full-time business for her,” said Fulop. Shoppers will find a collection of jewelry made from vintage 1970s tiles alongside other adornments on display next to the sales counter. Throughout the store, visitors will discover hardwood products made by Tropical Salvage. For nearly 30 years, that company has imported discarded wood from Indonesia to build furniture and homewares.

Managing a business will be a balancing act for someone like Jana Fulop, who is primarily interested in doing restoration work and needs that production time to ready items for sale. Fortunately, her niece watches the shop a couple of days a week, allowing the shop owner to work in the back, refinishing furniture or working on operational issues. However, she will also bring in more per-owned items that do not require refinishing. Additionally, partnering with environmentally friendly companies like Tropical Salvage is another way for the store to have inventory on the floor that does not require constant sourcing like the pre-owned items.

Fulop is happy with her move to Montavilla and looks forward to adapting the shop to meet local tastes and interests. The shop’s name comes from her desire to share stories through the pieces on display. With the large windows and skylights filling the sales floor with natural light, each classic piece of unique furniture can show its history and its refreshed potential to continue life in another home. Storied Vintage is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. Jana Fulop and her husband are Seventh-day Adventists and do not work during the day on Saturdays.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Promotion: Help keep independent news accessible to the community. Montavilla News has a Patreon account or you can pay for a full year directly online. We invite those who can contribute to this local news source to consider becoming paid subscriber or sponsor. We will always remain free to read regardless of subscription.

Infrastructure

Pedestrian Struck at Inactive Signal

Around 7:25 PM on August 18th, a car driving westbound on SE Stark Street crashed into a pedestrian crossing the road at 80th Avenue. An ambulance transported the person to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The marked crosswalk at the intersection had newly installed Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) signals meant to indicate to drivers that they should yield to people crossing. However, the RRFB lights never began blinking because crews had not activated the equipment in the six months since Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) contractors installed them.

In January, crews installed signal equipment on SE Washington Street at 86th Avenue and SE Stark Street at 80th Avenue. These RRFBs remained unavailable to people trying to cross those intersections while city staff waited for road markings and new electric service from the power company PGE. Six months later, around August 2nd, linemen connected power lines to the safety signals at both intersections. However, crews only activated the RRFB signals on SE Washington Street at 86th Avenue. Despite the service line connection earlier this month, PBOT representative Dylan Rivera explained that power service is not yet active on SE Stark Street at 80th Avenue, leaving people crossing there less protected. While this equipment remained inoperable, residents complained that these inactive signals created an unsafe condition where motorists were unsure of people’s intent to cross because they had not activated the crossing signal.

PGE attached power line from August 2nd

Crews working for PBOT started construction on safety upgrades at SE Stark Street and 80th Avenue over a year ago. People visiting the historic Montavilla Downtown area frequently use this marked crosswalk. This fast-paced street has limited safe crossing points with two lanes for automotive westbound traffic. PBOT engineers decided to update safety infrastructure here as part of the 70s Neighborhood Greenway project that will increase non-automotive uses at this intersection. In June 2023, crews reconstructed street corners to widen the sidewalk and install mounting infrastructure to support the new signal hardware. Road workers patched and repaved the intersection after trenching and laying new conduits between the corners in September 2023. In January 2024, with snow still on the ground, signal specialists installed RRFB hardware on SE Washington Street and SE Stark Street at 80th Avenue.

Completed and active signal equipment on SE Washington Street at 86th Avenue

The RRFB equipment remained inactive, awaiting the prolonged dry weather painting contractors require when applying high-visibility crosswalks to the road surface. PBOT representatives explained that the bureau’s policy requires street markings before activating crossing signals like RRFBs. Hicks Striping & Curbing completed the crosswalk work this April, and PBOT activated the RRFB at SE Washington Street and 80th Avenue soon after. However, the SE Stark Street unit remained unpowered and offline, along with an RRFB at SE 86th Avenue and Washington Street that crews completed as part of another project. At times, PBOT marked the dormant safety devices with caution tape, alerting pedestrians and cyclists to the non-functional equipment. After a prolonged delay, the utility company added power line connections to RRFB control equipment in early August.

Reader submitted photo taken minutes after the August 18th crash

This Sunday night crash occurred in the evening as the sun set behind Mt. Tabor, possibly limiting visibility. The RRFB equipment is designed to aid crossing pedestrians where light conditions or other distractions make them less visible to drivers. At the time of the crash, the activation buttons at this intersection were covered in caution tape, indicating they were not functioning. Witness reports say that one vehicle stopped for the pedestrian while a car in the second lane of the one-way street continued past, striking the southbound pedestrian and sending them to the ground. People at the nearby bar and restaurant residents saw the incident and called emergency services. Portland Fire & Rescue workers assisted the injured person until the ambulance arrived, and the driver of the car cooperated with the investigation.

Rivera expressed PBOT’s concern for the pedestrian and reinforced the need for signal equipment. “Injuries from crashes like this can impact a person for years, and our thoughts are with them and their community. Pedestrian beacons and crossing improvements such as the one nearly completed at this location can greatly improve visibility for pedestrians, and they have been shown nationally to reduce the chances of a fatal or serious injury crash. Even after the beacon is activated, we need everyone to use caution when driving on our streets.” PBOT has not set a timeline for activating this new safety equipment and is waiting on the utility company.

Update: As of August 20th, the RRFB signals on SE Stark Street at 80th Avenue are functional.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Promotion: Help keep independent news accessible to the community. Montavilla News has a Patreon account or you can pay for a full year directly online. We invite those who can contribute to this local news source to consider becoming paid subscriber or sponsor. We will always remain free to read regardless of subscription.

History

Montavilla History Questions Answered: Milepost 5 Stone

Q – What is the milepost 5 stone on SE Stark Street?

A – Here is the short answer. This obelisk-shaped stone is a wayfinding tool, also called a milestone or a milemarker. Historically, they were put up along roads to indicate the distance to or from a particular place. Here, the “P” stands for Portland, and the “5” stands for the distance from that place. 

This milepost is one of 15 erected at one-mile intervals along SE Stark Street. Nine survive, but not necessarily in their original locations. Milepost 5 may have been moved around during later street construction, but it is still approximately five miles from downtown Portland.

Milepost 5, 7724 SE Stark Street (Jacob Loeb)

The Milepost 5 marker is listed in the Portland Historical Landmark inventory, which places its installation date as 1854, the same year Stark Street was created. In that year, the Clackamas County Commission, in response to a property owner’s petition, approved the construction of a dirt road from the Willamette to the Sandy River. It followed the base line surveyed for the Territory of Oregon in 1851 and became known as Base Line Road (now SE Stark Street).

Google Maps detail showing the location and status of the original 15 milestones along SE Stark Street

Mileposts or milestones have a long history, dating back to the Roman Empire. The ancient Romans erected them along important roads at one-mile intervals, which for them was 1,000 double paces (.9 of our mile). Milestones were also used in Britain from the Middle Ages on.

This 1741 British milestone has a truncated obelisk shape like the ones found along Stark Street. Source: Alan Rosevear article in Milestones & Waymarkers, vol. 1, 2004

Milestones were used in America from colonial times until the early 20th century. Colonial Postmaster Benjamin Franklin wanted these markers on post roads to improve mail service efficiency. In Oregon, the importance of mile markers for wayfinding was encoded into territorial law. In the 1850s, Oregon laws required mileposts on territorial roads and made it a crime to remove or destroy milestones, mileboards, or guideboards.

Milestone marker on the Boston Post Road. Photo source: Wikimedia

By the 1920s, the old mileposts were being replaced with modern standardized road signs. But on our freeways, we still apply the old Roman system of identifying distance in relation to a significant destination.

By

Patricia Sanders

This is part of a new segment at Montavilla News called Montavilla History Questions Answered. If you have questions about Montavilla’s past that you’d like answered, local historian Patricia Sanders will investigate your question. Please email your questions to history@montavilla.net and we may feature it alongside Patricia Sanders’ research in a future post on this page.

Community, Entertainment, Event, Food and Drink

Montavilla Street Fair July 28

The 11th Montavilla Street Fair had record attendance in 2024, with an estimated 25,000 people walking along SE Stark Street from SE 82nd to 76th Avenues. The day started overcast, keeping temperatures lower than the previous two years. However, by the afternoon, the skies were solid blue. Temperatures climbed over the remaining hours until the vendors broke down their booth at 6 p.m. After the fair, many attendees remained in the neighborhood, dining and drinking at local restaurants and bars.

Original Article published July 20, 2024.

On Sunday, July 28th, the Montavilla East Tabor Business Association (METBA) will host the 11th annual Street Fair on SE Stark. Early that morning, crews will close the road from SE 82nd to 76th Avenues along with segments of side streets to allow the 150 booth operators to set up ahead of the 10 a.m. opening. This year’s event will run an hour later, allowing the anticipated 18,000 guests to stay until 6 p.m., with traffic returning to the street later that evening. Attendees will have access to four beer gardens and entertainment at four stages placed along the 1,400-foot-long community party.

On Wednesday, July 17th, sign installers placed the banner over SE Stark Street at 80th Avenue, announcing the Street Fair dates to everyone passing by. Although many people in the area already marked the date on their calendars, raising the banner represents Montavilla’s invitation to Portland. Thousands of visitors attend this neighborhood event annually, driving record sales to local businesses and introducing people to the historic Montavilla downtown.

This year, event organizers added a teen music stage on SE 80th Avenue and a pet cooling station sponsored by Noble Woof Dog Training. Younger fairgoers can gather for kids’ focused singer-songwriters performing on the SE 79th Avenue Plaza Stage. The two main stages will feature a diverse mix of local Portland music and national touring artists. Many past fair booth operators are returning alongside a crop of new makers, food vendors, and organizations. As an extended bonus, the Montavilla Farmers Market will open during its regular hours on the 28th, allowing attendees access to more booths and food options at SE 76th Avenue and Stark.

Sponsorship from Adventist Health Portland and a grant from the Portland Office of Events & Film help fund what has become one of the largest street fairs in Portland. Other local businesses, like Mr. Plywood, Washman Car Wash, and OnPoint Community Credit Union, are supporting this year’s street fair. People can find day-of-event updates and the full music lineup, including performance times, at the METBA website (metba.org).

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Map courtesy METBA

Promotion: Montavilla News will have a booth at this year’s Montavilla Street Fair. Please see us for a free sticker. We hope to see you there.

Community, Entertainment, Event, Food and Drink

Plaza Berry Bash July 18

On July 18th, from 4 to 8 p.m., the Montavilla Farmers Market will host a Berry Bash Summer Celebration in the Montavilla Plaza on SE 79th Avenue at SE Stark Street. Attendees can receive free berry recipe tastings and make shortcake treats. The event will feature live music and berry sales from market vendors. Threshold Brewery will host a beer garden at the plaza during the celebration. As an extension of the event, Redwood restaurant will host a Strawberry Social happy hour featuring on-theme cocktails and desserts a few doors down the street at 7915 SE Stark Street.

Funding from Prosper Portland and Portland Events and Film helped create this Plaza activity as part of the reimagined Thursdays on the Plaza summertime programming. Berry Bash is an interactive event that celebrates locally grown Oregon berries. The Montavilla/East Tabor Business Association (METBA) coordinates 79th Avenue Plaza activities with summer events like this, Montavilla Movie Nights, and many other family-friendly activities to bring people together in the seasonally comfortable weather. Later this month, METBA will host the 11th Street Fair on Sunday, July 28th. The well-attended event closes SE Stark Street from 82nd to 76th Avenues and offers food, music, beer gardens, and vendors. This year’s street fair lasts an hour longer, running from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

People looking for a mid-week activity should consider attending the Berry Bash Summer Celebration this Thursday and keeping an eye on the METBA calendar for future Plaza events. The Firsts Montavilla Movie Nights starts at 8 p.m. on August 8th with Ghostbusters Frozen Empire. People can attend Rock’ N Roll High School on August 15th and Cloak & Dagger on August 22nd.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Promotion: Montavilla News will have a booth at this year’s Montavilla Street Fair. Please see us for a free sticker. We hope to see you there.

Bar, Event, Food and Drink, History

Montavilla Brew Works 9yr Celebration

On Saturday, July 13th, Montavilla Brew Works will celebrate nine years of serving locally brewed beer with an all-ages event from noon to 9 p.m. Although this event commemorates the years since this pioneering neighborhood destination greeted guests, it represents a decade of work for founders Melissa and Michael Kora, who nurtured this ten-barrel brewery and taproom through good and challenging times. The festivities at 7805 SE Stark Street will have DJ MD providing music to guests inside and under the covered patio area, while Demarco’s Sandwiches will sell food from their food truck parked on SE 78th Avenue. The brew masters will also break out archived beers at the peak of their aging cycle for special pours of brewing history.

Montavilla Brew Works grew from a home-brewer’s passion and a desire to create a neighborhood-scale enterprise. Before starting his brewery, Michael Kora secured work with Bridgeport Brewing Company after briefly working for the owner’s winery business. When the seasonal wine work ended, Dick Ponzi learned of Kora’s desire to work in the brewing industry and found a place for him in his other business where he could learn about operations. “I didn’t get to brew because I didn’t go to brew school. I was driving a truck, working in the warehouse, shipping, distributing, moving beer around, and learning brewing at home. I then nano brewed for a while at the Green Dragon,” recalled Kora. After growing his skills and experiencing the brewing business from the inside, it seemed time to branch out on his own. Sitting at McMenamins Edgefield, Michael and Melissa Kora sketched out a five-year business plan and agreed to start looking for a space to rent.

Melissa and Michael Kora touring the Daugherty Auto Service garage 2013. Photo courtesy Michael Kora

The couple moved into Montavilla several years before starting their business. After agreeing to start a brewery, they looked for commercial spaces in neighboring areas but could not find a suitable location that fit their vision for the taproom. However, with some luck and good timing, Michael Kora discovered the neglected former Daugherty Auto Service garage at the corner of SE 78th and Stark Street. “I was riding home from the gym and came by Stark Street just to kind of look at what was going on and there was a for sale or lease sign. This building was so dilapidated it was nothing to look at, but Melissa and I were from the Detroit area of Michigan. I’d seen worse, so [I thought] this building is pretty cool and would make a cool brewery,” said Michael Kora. William “Dave” Beets, the operator of the now-demolished Beets Auto Body, owned the property and was excited to see it go to new owners for such an unexpected use. “He was a character, but he was surprisingly stoked. He said, ‘I think this is awesome. You guys are gonna be the first. There’s no breweries around here like this. It’s gonna be good for the community and the neighborhood.’ He was a neighborhood guy even though he didn’t live here,” recalled Kora.

Daugherty Auto Service garage. Photo courtesy Michael Kora

The Kora’s became tenants of the Stark Street building in 2013, but it would take over two years to open the doors to the public. The original owners of the 1922-era auto garage never designed it to house any other type of business, and it took substantial efforts to rehabilitate the building. Permits took four months to approve, and construction lasted another nine months. Kora discovered that the building roof slopes significantly to the northwest corner of the property for rainwater drainage, forcing him to place his tall brewing equipment at the south-facing front of the building, blocking windows and putting beer production centerstage. During construction, he added onto the north side of the building to create a walk-in cooler and storage room needed to keep finished beer and ingredients out of the limited customer-facing space.

Montavilla Brew Works construction. Photo courtesy Michael Kora

Construction delays, the added brewery inspections, and unanticipated expenses drained their cash reserves. Michael Kora started beer production offsite to begin bringing in funds and building the brand. Flying Pie Pizzeria was an early supporter, buying the pre-opening batches and installing a permanent Montavilla Brew Works tap handle at the restaurant, replacing Bud Light. Initially, they relied on help from friends, but the couple mainly worked alone at Montavilla Brew Works for the first few years. “Melissa designed everything on the interior. So she made this place feel like it does. And I was the beer guy and eventually the business guy. It was her and I for the first four and a half years,” recalled Kora. After the early lean years, they brought in help to brew their beers and cover bar shifts. With the added staff, it was beginning to feel sustainable until the pandemic upended the business model. Montavilla Brew Works focused on serving draft beer onsite with little attention paid to the at-home market. They distributed a limited number of kegs to local businesses but had not embraced canning. COVID-19 bar closures forced a change in the whole microbrewery industry. “We completely 180’d, and we’re in this world where we were doing 100% draft, and then we switched to 100% cans. Melissa and I were out there every week delivering to people’s homes,” said Michael Kora. They had to let their employees go to keep the business going. The brewery survived that scary time and invested early in outdoor seating to bring people back as soon as possible. Business is still recovering, but Kora expects it will not be on the same trajectory it was on before the pandemic.

Post-COVID, Melissa and Michael Kora spend less time in the brewery during service hours. Both are more focused on improving operations and branding, with a goal to make each subsequent batch better than the last. Although they retained canned beer to some degree, wide expansion is not part of the company’s plans. “A good 80 plus percent is still draft, and the remainder is packaged because we don’t distribute that far out of Portland. Hence putting the name of the neighborhood on it. We want people to come here. You want them to come to the neighborhood,” explained Michael Kora. Montavilla Brew Works’ hyper-local interest extends beyond just its business name. Over the years, Kora collaborated with area businesses to produce cross-promoting brews. These include an American amber beer titled Academy Amber after the Academy Theater, East Glisan Mosaic is dedicated to East Glisan Pizza Lounge, and a German Pilsner-style lager called Plywood Pilsner spotlights neighbor business Mr. Plywood. “We figured we live here, bought our house here, our business is here. We’re going all in, and you know, it’s worked. It’s helped build a really loyal fan base,” said Kora.

People can find limited supplies of Montavilla Brew Works beer at around 300 locations from Hood River to Hillsborough and as far south as Eugene and Corvallis. However, the corner of SE Stark Street and 78th Avenue is the best place to experience it. This weekend’s celebration will feature vintage beers that Kora has stored for years, just waiting for a special accession. The staff will sell these beers in smaller sipper cups to let more people experience the limited stock of aged brews. The event will also allow children to attend. Montavilla Brew Works has famously prohibited children, smoking, and televisions inside the tap room during regular business hours. However, on street fair days and special events, they set aside the rules prohibiting kids and open the space to all ages. Guests are encouraged to stop by July 13th starting at noon, and those interested in the archival beers should drop by early to get a taste while supplies last.

By

Jacob Loeb

Community, Event

Literary Event at BoneJax June 21

This Friday, June 21st, BoneJax will host a free literary event featuring authors reading excerpts from their recently published short stories collected in the “Defining Moments” anthology. From 7 to 8:30 p.m. people can gather in the vintage home furnishings store at 8040 SE Stark Street to listen to stories from LGBTQ+ lives and ask questions of the authors. Attendees can bring copies of the book purchased online or from BoneJax to the event for signing.

Six of “Defining Moments: Essential queer stories'” 15 authors will attend the event. The collection highlights short stories from writers of various backgrounds navigating societal challenges as they work towards self-acceptance and empowerment. The narratives offer insight into the complexities of LGBTQ+ lives at defining moments overlooked by mainstream accounts of those experiences.

Image courtesy Our Bold Voices

Since Montavilla’s branch library closed in November 1981, local literary events have become increasingly infrequent. However, Montavilla businesses have made space for authors over the years, allowing residents convenient access to writers and their work. Consider starting your weekend on SE Stark Street with dinner or drinks before heading to BoneJax for this engaging evening event.

Defining Moments: Essential queer stories – Authors List (* indicates June 21st speakers)

Article and photo by

Jacob Loeb