Business and residential tenants at Towne Storage in Portland, Ore., have been served eviction notices to vacate the self-storage property at 17 S.E. 3rd Ave. by the end of October. The aging building was recently purchased by a California-based investment company, which plans to gut the structure. Development plans include a penthouse and retail space, according to Josh Sturgis, operations manager for Towne Storage.
In all, 52 commercial tenants and 180 residential customers are affected. The five-story building has a long history with architects, artists, photographers and other small businesses as renters, the source reported.
Tenants have known about the sale of the building for about two months and were aware they would be evicted, according to Jenny Mitchel, manager at Peet-Kegler, a design studio that has operated out of the self-storage facility since 2006. "Our rent here is super, super cheap, but the building is totally crumbling and falling down," she told the source.
Portland, a city well known for its eclectic arts scene, is undergoing a real estate boom, which in some cases has resulted in mass evictions of home and business renters, who have paid low-market rates, according to the source. A 21-story building is planned next door to the self-storage property, Sturgis said, while a new apartment building is also under construction nearby.
Community activists and city officials are concerned new developments with higher rental rates will negatively impact artists and others who have relied on affordable studio space. "We're seeing artists getting priced out of the city every day, and if the people who are driving our local arts community can no longer afford to live here, it will have disastrous consequences," said Nick Fish, a city commissioner who serves as the city council’s liaison with the Regional Arts and Culture Council. "As we look to building more affordable housing, we have to take our arts community into consideration, or we will lose them."
Sources:
- The Portland Mercury: Evicted: Towne Storage Building Tenants are Getting the Boot Under New Ownership
