Vancouver and Clark County

[maccoinnich]

Vancouver council establishes funding for Heights District as a developer submits plans for first building
Under program, property owners will chip in to cover costs for services



Plans are starting to fall into place for central Vancouver’s Heights District. A developer submitted designs for the first new building shortly before the Vancouver City Council approved a new funding mechanism which will eventually place a fee on property owners in the district to pay for ongoing maintenance.

The council on Monday voted to approve a Heights Business Improvement Area, within which property owners will chip in to cover costs for services above what a city is ordinarily responsible for, according to a city staff report.

The business improvement area is primarily bounded by MacArthur Boulevard on the west, Mill Plain Boulevard on the north and North Devine Road on the east, but also includes the former Vanco Golf Range property, the Vancouver Fire Department Station at the corner of Mill Plain and Devine and Northwest Community Church.

The city owns most of the property in the improvement area, which includes the old Tower Mall, according to the city staff report. The city bought the Tower Mall property in 2017.

...continues at the Columbian.

[maccoinnich]

The Livington, a mixed-used project in Camas, will open this summer with 56 apartments and retail space
Also known as the Hudson East development, it is now taking retail space reservations



CAMAS — A mixed-use project that has been under construction in downtown Camas since early 2024 is nearing completion and now taking reservations for its ground-floor retail spaces.

Once completed, The Livingston, also known as the Hudson East development, at 404 N.E. Sixth Ave., will offer 4,458 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, 56 apartments on the upper two levels and an underground parking garage.

According to marketing information produced by Cascadia Development Partners, The Livingston/Hudson East development is set to open this summer and will feature a mix of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments, a dog-wash station, fitness facility, outdoor courtyard with a barbecue and firepit and a private lounge for residents.

...continues at The Columbian.

[maccoinnich]

Vancouver plans to sell part of parking lot next to City Hall for $1 for affordable housing project

Colas Development Group, Native American Youth and Family Center to break ground on project in May



The city of Vancouver plans to sell a portion of its parking lot next to City Hall for $1, where 95 affordable housing units will be built as part of the Waterfront Gateway development.

The Portland-based co-developers Colas Development Group and Native American Youth and Family Center plan to break ground on the affordable housing project in May.

“It’s going to be a beautiful building right in the center of downtown,” said Andrew Colas, CEO and president of Colas Development Group.

The architectural concept of the building is influenced by Native American ancestry and tribal ties to the land and rivers, according to the project’s architect, Scott Edwards Architecture.

...continues at the Columbian ($).

[maccoinnich]

Port of Vancouver plans Pike-Place-style public market



The Port of Vancouver has begun laying the groundwork to add a 40,000-square-foot public market to its Terminal 1 development along the Columbia River waterfront.

The market will largely resemble the Pybus Market in Wenatchee, Washington, with restaurants, shops and other local businesses to draw visitors further into the Terminal 1 redevelopment, an anchor of the 32-acre Vancouver Waterfront project.

It will also nod to previous businesses that have been housed on the dock over the last century.

The project is expected to be fully complete by 2028.

Crews began deconstructing an over 100-year-old dock structure on the project site that has held multiple businesses since the late 1800s from a working dock to a hotel.

....continues at the Portland Business Journal ($).

[PhillyPDX]

Originally Posted by maccoinnich

....continues at the Portland Business Journal ($).

Wow, this looks really neat. Prob will be a bit touristy (but I guess, so will James Beard market), but still, what an asset to the booming waterfront.

https://www.architectmagazine.com/project-gallery/terminal-1-public-market

[maccoinnich]

Parcels M and O

Pahlisch Commercial to develop 74 affordable homes in Vancouver's Heights District



A housing developer for the second phase of a major Vancouver project has been selected.

Pahlisch Commercial Inc. was selected by the Heights Community Investment Committee to develop two parcels within the new Heights District. It's slated to work with multiple nonprofit organizations to build 74 homes for households making between 80% and 120% of the area median income.

The Bend-based developer was selected through an RFP process that started last April.

Vancouver officials have high hopes for the overall Heights District Equitable Development Plan. The 205 acres could eventually host homes, schools, a cemetery, new roads and public transit. The city of Vancouver purchased the land in 2017 and demolished the mall in 2022.

...continues at the Portland Business Journal ($).

[CouvScott]

https://www.hyaspoint.com/live-stream/

[maccoinnich]

‘Previous plan isn’t feasible in this market’: Developers seek to scale back Waterfront Gateway project



The real estate firm hired to develop Vancouver’s Waterfront Gateway has told city officials the project will only be feasible by scaling it back and eliminating a planned public plaza.

Lincoln, then known as LPC West, signed a developer agreement with the city in 2023 for the stretch of property between City Hall and Vancouver’s Columbia River waterfront.

“The previous plan isn’t feasible in this market. Our goal is to still see development happen on the site as soon as possible,” said Patrick Quinton, the city’s economic development director.

High interest rates, escalating construction and material costs, along with slowing rental growth in residential and office developments led Lincoln to ask the city to alter the original agreement, Quinton told members of the City Center Redevelopment Authority on Jan. 15.

City leaders would like to “get as much housing as we can onto that site,” Quinton said. They hope to see Vancouver’s housing supply increase by more than 38,000 units over the next 20 years to meet current and future demand.

...continues at the Columbian ($).

[colossalorder]

It will be interesting to see what the new Washington state income tax means for Clark County (assuming it survives to implementation). That is, how much of its fortunes are tied to tax arb'ing Oregon?

[PhillyPDX]

Originally Posted by colossalorder

It will be interesting to see what the new Washington state income tax means for Clark County (assuming it survives to implementation). That is, how much of its fortunes are tied to tax arb'ing Oregon?

Probably not much since I’m seeing it only applies to 21,000 people in the entire state. Presumably the vast majority of those are in metro Seattle.

Looks like the entirety of Oregon only has 6,500. These are pretty rare households.

[colossalorder]

I doubt there is an immediate or massive direct effect either, but it may play out over time in certain spots. Like Camas is pretty dependent on Fisher Investments and this will just accelerate their exodus to Texas. Or those high end waterfront condo's and houses in Vancouver probably have a high percentage of Oregon tax refugees. I suspect those will lose some value.

Even though the tax may not bite them yet, I'm sure a lot of higher income people may see the writing on the wall -- they will either grow/inflate into the tax over time or, once established, the state will lower the threshold eventually.

[aquaticko]

If a similar tax in Massachusetts is indicative, it'll probably only have a positive effect. The simple truth is that most people with incomes >1 million don't live on those incomes, they live on their wealth. These are not people who really work for a living.

What that tax has done for Mass is generate, already in just a few years, several billion dollars for public use. This is truly money that was serving no purpose, sitting in such already stuffed coffers. It's almost like people have a marginal propensity to spend their income, and its much smarter to tax very high incomes so those resources can be put to better use....

[PhillyPDX]

Originally Posted by aquaticko

If a similar tax in Massachusetts is indicative, it'll probably only have a positive effect. The simple truth is that most people with incomes >1 million don't live on those incomes, they live on their wealth. These are not people who really work for a living.

What that tax has done for Mass is generate, already in just a few years, several billion dollars for public use. This is truly money that was serving no purpose, sitting in such already stuffed coffers. It's almost like people have a marginal propensity to spend their income, and its much smarter to tax very high incomes so those resources can be put to better use....

MA is also extremely good at implementation of tax dollars into productive use (maybe the best historically speaking). It’s a lot easier to pay big taxes when the average public school is as good or better than say, Lake Oswego or Bellevue schools. There is so much more to the equation than just “how much do I pay now?”. So now it will be up to WA to show the money is well spent and not just a money grab.

[maccoinnich]

More than a ‘wish or a dream’: Proposed arts center in east Vancouver moves forward with renderings
Project leader says with a plan, budget and site, construction could begin in 2027



Vancouver is inching closer to a world-class arts center.

The nonprofit Friends of Center for the Arts (formerly Southwest Washington Center for the Arts) just released architectural renderings of the proposed Center for the Arts at Columbia Palisades in east Vancouver. The nonprofit has tapped ZGF Architects — the firm behind the award-winning redesign of Portland International Airport — to design the center. The approximately 100,000-square-foot building, clad in glass and steel, will sit just north of state Highway 14 on 192nd Avenue, about 12 miles east of Vancouver City Hall. Groundbreaking could commence as soon as 2027, said Lisa Bergeson, the nonprofit’s new chief development officer.

“This is no longer a wish or a dream, and we’re not asking for people to take a leap of faith,” said Bergeson, who was hired in January. “We have an operational budget and plan, we have a confirmed site, we’ve done architectural studies, we have the leadership team and a dedicated board. … It’s not a matter of ‘if.’ It’s a matter of how quickly we can get this to fruition for Southwest Washington.”

The nonprofit signed a letter of intent with Cascadia Development Partners in 2024 to buy 1 acre in the northwest corner of the development. The land has still not been purchased, said John Kivlen, Friends’ director of theatrical planning, although the nonprofit “is in very close conversations” with Cascadia. The developers have provided invaluable support for the project, said Kivlen, a live theater producer. He also serves as Washougal’s arts commissioner and has helped to build six performing arts venues in Asia, including the FantaSea cultural theme park on Thailand’s Phuket Island.

...continues at the Columbian.

[PhillyPDX]

Originally Posted by maccoinnich

...continues at the Columbian.

Holy crap what an odd location for such a venue. I drive that all the time and that area is booming and with Camas money.....but yikes. Why not downtown near the booming waterfront?

I wonder how many seats?

[mhays]

"It’s not a matter of ‘if.’ It’s a matter of how quickly we can get this to fruition..."

Where have I heard this before? Let me guess, small matter of gathering nine figures in donations first, and maybe some public money...?

It's probably a worthy thing, and I'd support it if I lived in the area, but statements about "not if but when" are often wishful thinking.

A suburban location does seem odd. Normally those are good for dual-use high school auditoriums.

The issue of Portland's and Vancouver's small blocks is interesting. Maybe it's a bigger headwind to finding a centralized site. But a quick look at the map shows potential larger blocks like the Vancouver Community Library site (if not set aside for I-5)...