City of Roses Motel, six days in.

So far I've not been able to use the sidewalk for six days and all they have managed to do is drop a construction trailer and park this moving van.  I understand the construction trailer.  The moving van I'm less certain of its purpose.  It's an empty lot.

Happenings at the City of Roses Motel Site.

What's this?  A fence directly in my way on my walk to the train?

It seems that I will not be accessing this sidewalk at least through the end of the year.

Some establishing photos:

The sign as it stands now. 

I have had mental plans for this lot for years.  This area will be the garden, ringed on the outside by orchard trees.

This smaller section will be where the small house I will build will be located.

Opposite view of sign.  I wonder if the rose bush will survive whatever is coming.

Stay tuned.  Change comes quickly.

A lot has been happening with the block.

I haven't taken any pictures since November 30, but things continue apace.  I really like the look of this place; it looks like it will be very grand.  Here's the view on the approach from Interstate, heading north.
 

They've blocked out the place where the sign will go.
 

This is the far side of the block and I usually don't take pictures of it.
 

Here's the usual view.
 

We have a new story. On our block in N. Portland.

The next story has crept across the surface and has appeared in my view from the train.
 

From this side view it looks like the back side is framed up to its maximum height.  There also seems to be some sort of concrete gateway entrance between the two buildings.
 

Rainy Block

Not much going on from this angle.
 

But the side view shows the building creeping up and toward the front.
 

Watching a block stack up.

We've hit the point where the view from the train doesn't really show much.
 

So now I have a nice alternative viewpoint from the side.

I'm sure I did not properly appreciate that beautiful blue sky the day of, but wow, I am appreciating it now.

Update: Blue Lines.

Okay, we can't see all the way to the bottom anymore and now the predominant color is blue.  What's that about?
 

Oh look!  Blue criss-crossying things!  Some sort of rebar?
 

Block update

The block under gray skies.
 

This time I zoomed, so we could see a bit better.  Concrete forms are growing.
 

More block.

Perhaps I ought to take time to actually take a good picture of the block as I trundle by on the Max.  But here, you can see some concrete forms going up, on the right-hand side of the picture.
 

Update Block in N. PDX.

This picture shows not much as it was hastily composed.  What I thought was a crane has disappeared, so I'm not sure what that's all about.  There are also signs saying who is building it, but no picture yet.
 

Watching a crane on a block.

Checking in with our North Portland block, a crane has made an appearance.
 

Watching a block returns.

When we last left our block, the liquor store was still standing.  That was in September of 2009. After they took down the liquor store, nothing happened.  Weeds grew, it was very unsightly, there was a newspaper article published about how the people who now own the block lost their financing, but were going to turn the block into a park while they waited for things to improve.  This was a nice story, but the park did not come to pass as we spent two years looking at the weeds grow behind a flimsy fence.  

But it's a new day.  Things are happening.  There is a construction trailer on the block and heavy machinery is beginning to move in. We will keep a watch on what develops.

 

Even more block.

I suspect the liquor store building will be the last building on the block standing.

More block watching

Here it was in September of 2008.

 

All that remains in September 2009 is the chimney.  Looking at the old picture, I think the taller chimney belonged to the house next door.

Watching a block in N. Portland. I get it.

Today there is another fire truck and another house is burning. I think these must be controlled burns for learning purposes.

Watching a block in North Portland.

From the Max today I can see that the firefighters are putting out a fire on my favorite house. Arson? It seems pretty calm and in control.

Watching a block in N. Portland. April.

So we last checked in with our block in September and not much has happened. Construction projects always interest me that way. Something must have happened to have not much happen, but I don't have the research skills to figure out what. At this point, this block has been sitting boarded up for at least nine months. Is the project on hold? I wish that if it was, they would let people grow things in the abandoned yards. There is a particularly nice empty lot that I have had my eye on since before the houses were emptied.

So one house has been moved. I know it was moved, rather than torn down because it was jacked up for about a month or so before it disappeared completely. That is another thing I don't understand. When moving houses, why do they leave them up in the air for such a long time? I would think it would be essential for the house to spend very little time in the air, but it seems to be standard practice to let everything settle on its temporary foundations, even if those foundations are eight feet in the air. And where did the house go? Again, my research skills fail me. I'm sure there is a permit on file somewhere where I can see, but I don't know how to find it.

At any rate, we have no "in the air" pictures because I haven't been Ms. Carpe Diem when it comes to taking pictures of late. The problem is that the camera is in the zippered pocket of the bag, which is on the back of the bike so taking a picture means not only stopping the bike, but getting off the bike, unhooking the bungee that keeps the bag attached to the rack and I just never got around to it. I have plans to make a cute canvas camera holder for the front basket which will provide easy access, but so far it only exists in my mind.

Here was the house before:
And here is what you see now:
The smashed steps are a nice effect.

Watching a block in N. Portland.

This block in North Portland near the Prescott Street Max stop looks due for some changes. I think there is a mixed use building on tap. When I moved to North Portland one of the houses on this block became a favorite of mine. So I noticed one day when it was boarded up. Eventually I noticed all of the houses on the block were boarded up. I'll report back now and then when things start to happen. But here is where we are right now.

The house I like is on the left in this picture. The urban agriculture me dreamed of having a large garden in the empty lot taking up most of this picture. The side view of the house showing broken windows already in the upper stories. Those hoodlums have never seen It's a Wonderful Life.

Doesn't it look like a grand old lady of a house?
It's next door neighbor, a nice little Victorian. It looks like my bike crept into that shot.
Another house I am fond of, though I would take off the vinyl siding.
This one has a good porch for sittin'.

Looking down the block face as we continue our counter-clockwise journey.
There is still some nice decorative shingling on this house's upper story.
The back side of the apartments on the corner.
Front side of the apartments. They are the most run down of all the houses.
A lovely cottage.
Another nice cottage.
This is the house I can see as I ride North on Interstate. It took me a long time to realize all the houses on the block were boarded up, not just my favorite, because this one has bars on the windows and they did not cover it with the more obvious plywood.
Driveway.
I also didn't notice because this Liquor Store is not boarded up. But it is indeed closed. Notice the Max transmission tower visible right above the "R" on the sign...
And here it is, taking a chunk out of the Liquor Store. I've always wondered how much Tri-Met had to pay to cut into the building like that.
A close up view.
The very 1960s white brick front of the liquor store.
And thus completes our walk around the block. We shall keep an eye and see what develops.
On one hand, I love old houses, and hate to see any of them torn down, even the most decrepit. On the other, if a cute tiny little house hadn't been torn down a few miles north on Interstate, I wouldn't be living in my lovely home. Interstate is an area where the city planners are hoping to increase density without bringing in so many cars. It worked for our house. Hopefully this block will have something fabulous.