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PORTLAND, Ore. – Two houses near the corner of Southeast 44th Avenue and Hawthorne Boulevard have been demolished as has a nearby billboard, months after several trees were cut on the property, leaving the land clear to make way for a four-story, 30-unit development project.
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
The 1909 home was razed first. Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
An early-assistance application during the fall was the first indication of new development coming to the site. Trees on the property were partially cut down at the beginning of December, and the stripped trunks stood for three weeks before the cut was finished.
Five months later the two houses, built in 1909 and 1921, have been demolished. A billboard on the corner property has also been removed.
The 1921 home on Hawthorne Boulevard came down shortly after the first. Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
Both properties at 1515 SE 44th Ave. and 4334 SE Hawthorne Blvd. sold in late October, according to county records. The 1909 house sold from Endeavor Equity Partners LLC to The Truman LLC, while the 1921 house sold from Thomas Ruminski to The Truman LLC. The Truman LLC is registered to Don Mutal.
The sales history has since disappeared from public records, but at the time records indicated the properties sold for $500,000.
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
At that time the houses were on separate 5,000-square-foot lots, but they have since been combined into a single parcel of land for the new development.
In December the city received an application for construction of a four-story, 30-unit development on the site. The building will be called The Truman, as its ownership information indicates.
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
The applicant on the new construction was Mike Coyle of permit middleman company Faster Permits, while the contractor was Path Construction. This contractor was also listed on the demolition permits.
The new construction is designed by In Situ Architecture.
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
Photo credit: Portland Chronicle contributor
Rendering by In Situ Architecture