The Oregonian - July 5, 2007
Oregon City Vision: Turn Dump into Mall
By: STEVE MAYES
The same company that turned a Tualatin gravel pit into the must-visit Bridgeport Village mall hopes to work some magic on a former Oregon City landfill.
The Rivers at Oregon City won't be just one more mall next to a freeway, promised developer Fred Bruning, president of CenterCal Properties. "What (The Rivers) really ends up being is a place where people are comfortable spending an afternoon or a whole day," he said.
Developers of the 64-acre site plan to blend high-end specialty shops with a megaplex movie theater and a dozen good restaurants, opening by summer 2009. Some buildings would be three or five stories, with residential units or office space on upper floors.
Historically, major retailers have not viewed Oregon City as a desirable market, said Craig Sweitzer, president of Urban Works Real Estate, which specializes in retail property. But research by CenterCal shows an area on the upswing.
The estimated average household income within five miles of the mall site is $73,500, according to a CenterCal study, with customers from West Linn, Lake Oswego and the wealthy rural Stafford area all within reach. The average Portland-area household income is closer to $63,500.
There is a residential building boom in Oregon City and southern Clackamas County, and a major highway, Oregon 213, provides a direct connection between the mall and the increasingly upscale suburban fringe, Bruning said.
Trace Interstate 205 south from the Columbia River, and you'll notice that Clackamas Town Center is pretty much the last major retail center until you reach Interstate 5. "A lot of the retailers we talk to say this is a large hole in the market for them. They see (The Rivers) as a viable site to complete their market penetration," Bruning said.
The mall also could be shot of steroids for Oregon City's economic development efforts.
City officials believe the mall and a nearby waterfront residential project will anchor some $500 million in new development on Oregon City's largely underdeveloped north side. City Manager Larry Patterson said he is fielding more calls from developers these days, and he attributes much of the interest to CenterCal's mall.
To be sure, CenterCal faces obstacles.
Buildings will require pilings because the landfill soil isn't stable, and a venting system will be needed to deal with methane generated by buried garbage. Cost: an extra $26 million.
Traffic flow at the site, near the intersection of Interstate 205 and Oregon 213, will require an interchange upgrade. Cost: $15 million.
"At the end of the day, we will not do this project unless we can fix the traffic. If you can't make it work for your customers, you're going to lose a lot of money building the center," Bruning said.
Oregon City and CenterCal will team up to cover the extraordinary expenses.
CenterCal will front the money for the roadwork and get a partial refund later. Some federal highway money is available, so the city won't foot the entire bill. Oregon City's urban renewal agency will invest $25 million to $35 million to assist with roads, utilities and other site development costs. In August, the city is likely to raise the limit on urban renewal spending from $29 million to $130 million.
"We're going to do what needs to be done to make this happen, Patterson said.
The Rivers is modeled on Bridgeport Village. CenterCal was part of the venture that developed the wildly successful 500,000-square-foot retail center just south of Lake Oswego. Bridgeport's tenants include upper-end retailers such as Crate & Barrel, Cole Haan and Coldwater Creek Spa, several restaurants and an IMAX theater.
Bridgeport is successful because it brought a batch of fresh retail faces to an underserved retail area, Sweitzer said. If Bruning can do the same thing in Oregon City, "I assume he'll do very well," Sweitzer said.
Clackamas Town Center, four miles north of The Rivers site, is following a similar course, adding 250,000 square feet to its existing 1.2 million square feet of retail space, a 20-screen theater, two open-air retail villages, a remodeled food court, a six-level parking structure and several free-standing restaurants. The new, improved mall will be finished in November.
Clackamas Town Center's marketing manager, Leslie Boies, said she doesn't view Bruning's project as a competitive threat.
"It's good when consumers are served by the widest variety of choices," Boies said.
stevemayes@news.oregonian.com | 503-294-5916
