Responding to growing support for house preservation in Portland’s older neighborhoods, the City Council on Wednesday voted to significantly amend the much-discussed Residential Infill Project. Although the Council largely supported the concepts presented by the City’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, a series of amendments were adopted to “make it more attractive to preserve the […]
Show Your Support for Portland’s Historic Resources
Restore Oregon is calling on our friends in the historic preservation community to demonstrate a strong showing of support for curbing demolitions, protecting historic resources, and encouraging compatible infill on December 7th at City Hall. In their once-a-year opportunity to discuss the most important historic preservation issues with the Portland City Council, the Historic Landmarks […]
This Wednesday: Raise Your Voice to Protect Portland’s Neighborhoods
Update: City Council has extended the deadline to submit written testimony until Wednesday, November 23. The City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) wants to respond to Portlanders’ concerns about changing neighborhoods citywide. The Residential Infill Project was initiated in the fall of 2015 to address growing pains related to demolitions, the size of infill homes, and […]
Historic Tax Credit Advocacy Alert
Restore Oregon is tracking carefully the status of the federal Historic Tax Credit (HTC) which provides a 20% tax credit to offset the cost of historic rehabilitation projects. Without the HTC, more than 90 redevelopment projects in Oregon like the White Stag Block in Portland or the Post and King Building in Lakeview would not […]
Future Success Secured
In the past year, Restore Oregon has made great strides towards protecting and preserving the places that make Oregon livable and sustainable. This is an update on two of the places that were on the 2016 list of Oregon’s Most Endangered Places and have now progressed toward the ultimate goal of a long-term viable use. The […]
What's Going On Up There?
Across Oregon, people are flooding back into historic downtowns. Younger generations are searching for an authentic experience in where they choose to live and work while retiring Oregonians are looking to downsize to vibrant centers with plenty of easily accessible options for shopping, dining, and recreation. Communities across the state are hoping to take advantage […]
Portland First in Nation to Mandate Deconstruction of Historic Homes
Effective October 31, any one or two-family home that was built in 1916 or earlier or is a designated historic resource cannot be demolished by the typical bulldozer process, but must be manually deconstructed and salvaged. In response to the demolition epidemic sweeping across Portland, the City convened a Deconstruction Advisory Group (DAG) to recommend […]
Newberg Recognizes Historic Survey as Economic Stimulant
Newberg is following in the footsteps of towns like Astoria that recognize their historic buildings are economic assets as well as local cultural icons. The Newberg Graphic recently published this article discussing Newberg’s historic survey project to document their historic downtown buildings. A website was created to house findings of the survey, along with a […]
Internal Conversions: A Sensitive Solution
The City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability recently conducted a study to assess the architectural and structural feasibility of internally converting historic homes into two or more dwelling units. Internal conversion is when a home that has previously been used for a single family is divided into multiple apartment units or studios allowing […]
Local Artist Portrays Endangered Places
Restore Oregon is thrilled to announce a partnership with local artist and conservator Kate Powell. Over the course of the last several months, Kate has created stunning watercolor paintings of several of Oregon’s Most Endangered Places. These evocative and colorful pieces will be auctioned at the Restoration Celebration on Friday, November 11 at the Sentinel […]