Beaumont-Wilshire neighbors on 35th Place woke up on Valentine’s Day to the pounding of jackhammers. Was it preparation for a new concrete driveway next door? Was it a city crew doing some street repairs? Nothing of the sort. To the surprise and consternation of the block’s residents, the iconic house at 3419 NE 35th Place that BWNA and concerned residents had been collaborating to save was suddenly and unexpectedly being destroyed! But how could this be happening? After all, BWNA had been granted a 120-day demolition delay by the Bureau of Development Services on November 18th in order to negotiate with Complete Construction’s Rick Bluhm on alternatives to destruction, and the 120 days had not yet elapsed. Turns out, Rick Bluhm and his lawyer had figured out a way around the delay, then kept the impending demolition date a secret from the neighborhood until the very last moment. Moreover, the person in charge of building permits and demolition delays—Bureau of Development Services (BDS) Director Paul Scarlett—neglected to inform BWNA that the demolition delay had been declared null and void as of early February. Thus, word of the ongoing demolition ended up reaching BWNA on the day of via telephone calls by dismayed and incredulous residents on the block.
So what happened to bring about this 180-degree reversal? According to BDS Section Manager for Permitting Services Kareen Perkins, Rick Bluhm’s lawyer met with City Council’s lawyer and found out that the 120-day delay could be avoided by simply opting out of the original demolition permit and applying for a “replacement structure” permit, which provides an exception to the 120-day delay provision. The convoluted rules to the game can be found in Portland City Code Section 24.55.200.
Why a demolition permit would not be required prior to obtaining a restructure permit is puzzling, to say the least. (To investigate the code for yourself, go to the City of Portland’s website and click on “Codes”.)
Meanwhile, while the battle has been lost to save the home on 35th Place, the effort to persuade City Council to revise the building code has not. Neighborhood associations from around the East Side are networking to develop a unified proposal for changes in the code to present to the Council. The message: responsible building code revision is urgently needed and should be a priority for the City’s leadership.