We had Friday off from work because we had a work retreat on Saturday. It was at the Allison Inn & Spa in Newberg and there was carpooling involved. I needed to get to a meeting spot on MLK and decided that this morning was a good time for a longer walk. Here’s what I saw along the way.
Once upon a time, this lot had a blue house on it. I took a picture of that house (but didn’t tag it properly and now I can’t find it. I also have a view from the alley of the initial stages. Now it has eight townhouses. From an infill perspective, I very much like this development. Why? Each unit has a parking space. Also I think they look like small places. Better to have one house torn down and replaced with eight small homes than one huge one. I haven’t been successful in finding a listing, possibly because these have already all sold, and attempts to spy through windows failed because people live there. But I would like to see the inside of one of these units.
I think the sudden designation of a street is a little bit of overkill, though.
I’ve admired this house for some years now. Full basement, okay sized yard, nice mid-century design. 
Once upon a time North Portland had a convent. (Maybe more than one, what do I know?) And then the convent closed and eventually the land surrounding it was plotted into owner-occupied and rental housing. But you can still see the original building. And people still live in it.
What do you suppose happened to the statuary that was in this alcove?
Brand new alleyway! New to me, at least.
Interesting design here.
This elm tree is not long for this world.
Another alleyway, this one with contrails. And power lines.
Good bones on this house. It needs some love, though.
Dead car wash.
Dead building. But such excellent mid-century design. I think it could still come back.
When I moved to Boston, one of the markers that I lived in a big city was the presence of the Boys & Girls clubs everywhere. I knew about them from commercials featuring famous people who once hung out at them. Like this one. Which is from 2011, and thus not very old. But watch it and see if you don’t get all teary. Also I feel like Denzel Washington has done voicework for Boys & Girls clubs for many many years. Ha! The internet confirms my belief. You can even watch his first ad from 1993. Prepare to get all teary. Or, as we called it back then (due to Saturday Night Live): verkelmpt.
And Portland has it’s own Boys and Girls club. But just one location. We’re not that big of a city.
I would guess that the convent’s statue probably went to another convent, or perhaps to a Catholic church. It’s a really lovely building. One of my favorite architectural styles.
The only problem I have with those townhouses is that their windows look into each other. I would feel like I could never have my blinds open.
Do you know if the Boys & Girls Club is actually a mid-century modern building, or if it was built more recently with the intent to look that way?
Good point about the townhouses. I hadn’t thought of that.
I just looked on Portland Maps and it looks like the tax history only goes back to 1997, and the sales history shows a sale in 1986 and 1994. So I suspect that building was built for the site.
Incidentally, in googling the Boys and Girls club, I discovered there is more than one location in Portland. This is just the one I know about.