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 […]
Guide to Requesting Delay Extensions for Proposed Residential Demolitions
In April 2015, the City of Portland adopted new rules governing demolitions in the city’s single-family residential zones. These rules allow the public to request an additional delay period for the purpose of saving significant houses from demolition. Because the process can be confusing, a citizen guide has been created to provide step-by-step instructions for individuals and organizations […]
Restore Oregon Wins Precedent-Setting Bull Run Court Case
The historic Bull Run Power Plant was saved today following a Land Use Board of Appeals ruling that will enable the adaptive reuse of rural historic resources across Oregon for years to come. Restore Oregon invested significant time and resources in filing a brief and arguing before the court in support of the preservation-friendly land […]
Oregon Main Street Update – July 2015
It is rewarding to see the amazing accomplishments of the Oregon Main Street Network communities over the past few years in breathing new life into their historic downtowns using the nationally recognized Main Street Approach® to preservation-based economic development. Main Street programs and communities have a vital role to play in ensuring that the historic […]
Preservation Field School Comes to Portland
Have you ever wanted to experience preservation firsthand? Look no further! The University of Oregon’s Historic Preservation Program will be hosting the 2015 Pacific Northwest Preservation Field School in the Portland area later this summer. The two sites attendees will be working on are the Pioneer-era A.J. Masters House in Hillsboro and a log home […]
State Supreme Court to Hear Preservation Case
The historic preservation field reached a new milestone on April 24th when Chief Justice Thomas Balmer ordered the State Supreme Court to review a law that jeopardizes the preservation of as many as 3,200 historic properties across Oregon. The case, Lake Oswego Preservation Society v. City of Lake Oswego, represents the first time that Oregon’s highest court has taken up a specifically historic preservation […]
Saving the Rayworth House: A Preservation Saga
It all started with a bottle of wine… Restore Oregon Board member Roy Fox and his wife Kim were gathered with friends in their home unwrapping bottles of wine they’d bought as part of the Architectural Heritage Center’s annual “Riches of a City” auction, when, as typically happens at the Fox’s annual “blind wine” parties […]
Egyptian Theater Almost Ready for Its Close-Up
Back in 2011 the Egyptian Theatre (built in 1925) was placed on Restore Oregon’s Most Endangered Places list. It had been shut down by our theatre’s owner, the Urban Renewal Agency of Coos Bay, because of structural concerns. In 2012 the City of Coos Bay and the Egyptian Theatre Preservation Association (ETPA) embarked on an […]