When Cindy Dawson first discovered Vancouver’s East Evergreen corridor in the late 1990s, she didn’t see run-down storefronts and squat buildings. She saw potential.
The Oregon native – who likes to keep a low profile – envisioned an artistic boutique neighborhood with mixed uses and upper scale commercial vendors.
Dawson has purchased several lots along Evergreen Boulevard between Winchell Avenue and Grove Street, including the Igloo Restaurant, in which she invested $1 million to remodel.
She has been quietly buying property in the area since 2001, working toward the ultimate vision she calls the Grand District: a mixed-use commercial area filled with artists and local and national retailers, similar to Portland’s Pearl District or Alberta Arts District.
“It was just a feeling,” Dawson said as to why she chose the small neighborhood that hasn’t seen much change in the last 20 years. “This felt like a community. I want the live-work environment, and I think it’s just ripe for development.”
Plans for the properties are in the conceptual phase. Dawson is in the process of assembling an association of business and property owners to develop a plan for the neighborhood with the help of Scott Sadler, managing partner of the Igloo.
Dawson recruited Sadler, who lives in Salem and is the managing partner for Harry’s Fresh Deli in Portland and owns the Arbor Cafe and Bakery in Salem.
They also want to engage neighborhood associations, the chambers of commerce and economic development council.
Dawson will spend the next few months gathering information and cultivating interest, then hopes to have a more concrete plan.
As it stands, in the next five years, Dawson would like to see upgraded storefronts and a variety of uses, from dog groomers and galleries to wineries and restaurants.
Dawson said she had been looking to buy more properties, “but now we’re looking for some participation.”
She declined to say how much money she’s thus far invested into the neighborhood, but said she’s put in as much as she’s willing without some sort of partnership or return.
“I’ve invested more with my heart than looking for an immediate return,” Dawson said.
While some are skeptical about whether East Evergreen Boulevard has the capacity to become a destination, Sadler has been inspired by Dawson’s passion.
He is interested in developing commercially on Evergreen.
“I see a lot of potential,” he said. “It’s an interesting location with good access, and I think the only direction that Vancouver can grow and still have old neighborhood charm is this way.”
The area is a mish-mash of incomes and upper- and lower-scale development. It hasn’t received much attention in decades, but new businesses are beginning to pop up and the Grand Central project has just broken ground down the hill.
The big question
The variables add up to one big question mark as to whether the neighborhood is ready for development.
The neighborhood demographics suggest support for redevelopment could continue to lag, said Pam Lindloff, associate vice president at NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson specializing in retail sales and leasing.
Retailers look at density and income when locating, Lindloff said. Within one mile of the Grand District’s center, the current population estimate is 11,349 people in 5,226 households with 23 percent of households with an income of less than $15,000, according to a demographics report prepared by national market researcher Claritas.
About 13 percent of the households have a household income of $50,000 to $74,000 – the bracket many developers use as a base when looking to develop in an area.
The estimated average household income is $42,021 with a median household income of $30,626.
From 1990 to 2000, the population there grew 6.92 percent, and it is expected to grow 3 percent to 11,721 in 2012.
Vancouver builder J.D. Muyskens and Ralph Wilson of Vancouver-based LSW Architects developed the Evergreen Row Houses at Evergreen Boulevard and “S” Street that are marketed at nearly $440,000. Construction was finished on the 12 units in 2006 and four remain unsold.
Muyskens said Wilson chose the location because he lives in the neighborhood and was afraid a developer would buy the lot and build a monster apartment complex there and the two have been happy with the decision.
While Muyskens said the neighborhood may not be quite ready for upscale development, he said that time isn’t far off.
“Maybe we were pioneering a little bit, but the time is coming when things are going to change,” he said. “Some things need a bit of improvement, but Grand Central is coming in and you have the Historic Reserve right there. Anything closer in is getting more and more desirable. I think eventually it will be supported.”
What about retail?
As it stands, the area is not heavily attractive for retailers, said Gerald Baugh, manager of business development for the city of Vancouver.
Grand Central could create momentum for the area and new development will not be able to survive with only the support of the neighborhood – it’s going to need to be the “next hip, sexy thing” to be a destination for those who don’t live nearby, he said.
“A really cool retailer is going to need a real incentive to locate there,” Baugh said.
Kimberly Field, owner of Kimberly’s Imports said she’s been pleased with how well the community has supported the shop. When she located on Evergreen in October, she waited to sign a lease until she was sure of the support.
The neighborhood is growing and improving, and Field said she believes home ownership is up – a very good sign, Baugh said. With ownership comes stability and better support of local business.
“We need more retail,” Field said. “More of a reason for people to come down here.”
But Field is skeptical about the influence Grand Central will have on the area.
“Why would it have an impact on Evergreen?” she said. “If anything, more business will be going to the waterfront, and it might even be bad. It might detract from bringing business up the hill.”
Field said she regularly gets customers from Portland who use the 205 bridge.
Tommy and Carrie Fieweger have leased the “Gnome House” for their Allstate Insurance company and are looking into moving to the neighborhood because they see change coming.
Tommy Fieweger is a local firefighter and said he has seen improvement in the area.
“It feels like a neighborhood,” Carrie Fieweger said.
But Glenda McCarthy, who has owned Christine’s restaurant since 1999, doesn’t see improvements coming any time soon.
“The same businesses that were here when I took over are still here,” she said.
McCarthy said the residents are generally low-income and she regularly sees graffiti and vandalism.
“I consider this a bad location,” she said. “I bought the restaurant because there was already a customer base, and it’s the regulars who pay the bills.”
But Lois Middleton, who owns Bohemian Espresso, pointed to the “It” Portland neighborhoods as examples. They started out as run down, neglected corridors, but the affordability caught home and business owners’ eyes.
“I see that here,” Middleton said. “This could be the next Alberta Street.”
Baugh said he thinks creating a new vision for the neighborhood is a great idea.
“But at the end of the day, do the demographics support what you’re trying to do?”
Sadler said he can see the concern. Sales at the Igloo have tripled since February, but that’s not saying much, he said.
“There’s been no development here for so long and the perception is what the concern is listed as,” Sadler said. “There’s a real longing for something new to happen here, and there’s always concern about change. I like change. When things start happening, I think people will respond.”
Developer Cindy Dawson now owns all of the property along Evergreen from Grove to Gillis streets, including the Maytag building and a house behind the Igloo Resturant, and the northwest block of Grand and Evergreen boulevards, which Dawson considers her premier property.
Dawson bought and remodeled a small cottage at 2819 E. Evergreen, which she calls the “Gnome House” and is now home to an Allstate Insurance company, the former School Employees Credit Union building (where Dawson has located her headquarters) and a block at Mill Plain Boulevard and Winchell Street.
She also owns a large vacant lot on the south end of “Z” Street and Evergreen Boulevard to Sixth Street. For the time being, Dawson has installed several art pieces on the lot to attract attention, but eventually, she envisions a mixed-use residential building.
She has remodeled several homes on the properties, to be used as rentals.
Dawson does not have specific development plans for the lot at Winchell Avenue and Mill Plain Boulevard.
