Portland Oregon Housing: Midrise Capital of North America?

I am ashamed to say I didn’t know anything about Portland, Oregon’s mid-rise transformation before a recent visit. And I call myself an urban nerd!  I am now convinced more than ever that Calgary needs more mid-rises and less high-rises.

Portland Mid-rises Collage

Slabtown Fun

We chose our Portland Airbnb (Benson Manor) on a recent trip there partly because it was close to the city’s two well-known trendy urban villages - Pearl District and Nob Hill - and its walkability to downtown.  It was also right on a street-car line, making it a great way to experience the city’s transit system.  We also thought it would be fun to live in a community like Hillhurst/Sunnyside for our Portland adventure. 

Industrial Chic

But once there, I quickly learned we were staying in Slabtown, an old warehouse industrial district north of Nob Hill’s trendy 21st and 23rd main streets. Slabtown earned its name from the lumber mills that once dominated the industrial area and sold slabs of log edges, cut to square logs, as a cheap source of fuel to laborers. It was not hard to imagine the communities past, as across the street from our apartment was a busy ‘60s looking Les Schwab tire store with 6 bays and a lumber yard, both relics of the community’s industrial past.  (Calgary’s equivalent might be Manchester or even East Village before all the industrial buildings were torn down to create overflow parking for downtown.)  

It was very pleasant to walk along the streets with their mix of industrial chic, early 20th century painted ladies homes and new mid-rises.  I loved the fact there are no monster buildings taking up an entire block or so high they dwarf you. 

Slabtown has the wonderful welcoming feeling of a village. It didn’t feel contrived like master-planned communities often do. 

Slabtown Midrise Collage

Pedestrian Friendly 

What I also loved about Slabtown was almost all of the new buildings were midrise i.e. 5 to 12 storeys high, with commercial spaces at the street. I especially enjoyed the New Seasons Market (grocery store) with no residential tower above it.  It reminded me of Calgary Co-op’s Midtown store, but with less surface parking and two midrise building rather than a dwarfing tower next to it.  

The human scale of the buildings and mix of retail, restaurants, cafes and recreational activities at street level created an attractive pedestrian environment.  What was also interesting is that there was no real main street, but rather the shops, cafes, restaurants, fitness studios scattered throughout the community.  

Many of the blocks in the Pearl District and Slabtown have these inviting mid-block pathways.

Midrise Madness

Exploring Portland further, I discovered the construction of new midrise buildings with commercial spaces along the street is happening everywhere. Although almost “cookie cutter” in size,  but each one was different in their façade materials and design.   

There must be 100+ new midrise buildings recently completed or under construction across the city.  I found them along NW 21st and 23rd Avenues  in Nob Hill, plus dozens more along N Mississippi, N Williams and Alberta Avenues. There are also several mid-rise residential developments in the Lloyd District, Portland’s Entertainment District (two arenas, mega convention centre and large indoor shopping centre) just across the river from downtown.  And also across the river but further south, there are dozens more in the Central Eastside and along Burnside Street and Hawthorne Boulevard. 

CoStar, a sort of Bloomberg wire for the real estate industry in Portland, counted 11,000 new apartment style residential homes under construction as of last September. Yes there are concerns of a glut of multi-family residential development in Portland, however, mostly in the luxury segment of the market. 

Portland Midrise Collage

Calgary vs Portland

What I didn’t see in Portland was the “missing middle” housing you see in Calgary’s established communities outside of the City Centre i.e.  row housing, corner conversions, side-by-sides.  Nor did I see the residential skyscrapers (30+ floors) that dominate Calgary’s Beltline, East Village and Downtown West neighbourhoods.  

What I saw was more similar to what is happening in Bridgeland, Inglewood, Kensington, Marda Loop, West District, Westman Village and University District - lots of mixed-use buildings each 5 to 12 storeys tall.  

I found it strange that I didn’t see lots of public realm improvements (new parks or streetscape improvements) as a result of all this new residential development, except in the Pearl District and Slabtown.

Calgary Midrise Collage    

Last Word 

While I haven’t visited every city in North America, I think Portland must be a strong contender for the “Midrise Capital of North America.” Having visited Vancouver, Seattle, Nashville, Austin and Denver over the past few years - all cities you would think might compete with Portland given their robust economies and demographics -  I haven’t seen the plethora of new midrise buildings I found in Portland.

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