C.E. JOHN,a real estate development company, came to us with…

…a Microsoft Word logo

a website with cobwebs on it

journalists nipping

at their heels

Pre-Besaw history a rich trove1892 building first used

as a grocery store

By Allan Classen

Besaw’s Café has been a part of the

neighborhood since before the 1905

world’s fair, a story continually retold

on the restaurant’s menus and website.

It’s a colorful history, running

through Prohibition and characters

like Clyde Besaw, son of the restau-

rant’s founder, who is still remembered

by some old timers today. Clyde, who

ran the business until 1979 and lived

until 1997, was known to physically

expel liquor commission inspectors

from his premises. He once took an

item off the menu immediately after a

favorable review in the daily newspa-

per; he didn’t want his working class

establishment to become popular with

the social elite.But the little building at the corner

of Northwest 23rd and Savier had a

life before the Besaws came to town,

and its details and characters are even

more intriguing than those of the later

history. Clyde himself would have had his

hands full with Johanna Duhrkoop,

the wife of the man who erected the

building in 1892 as a grocery store.

At least she thought she was his

wife. She lived with him 25 years, bore

seven children and helped run several

of his businesses. But after Charles B. Duhrkoop

died in 1893, a daughter of his first

AUGUST ’11VOLUME 25, ISSUE 12

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Continued on page 6

By Allan Classen

Besaw’s Café, the oldest restaurant in

the Northwest District, may be demolished

as part of a four-story, mixed-use develop-

ment planned at Northwest 23rd and Savier

streets. Four 19th century houses adjacent to the

restaurant are certain to go if the plan is

carried out.

25T H ANNIVERSARY FEAT URE

The second five years, 1991-95

Demolition of Besaw’s corner,

perhaps Besaw’s itself, planned

Representatives for the developer, C.E.

John of Vancouver, Wash., have said they

intend to keep the 119-year-old Besaw’s

building and even rebuild a cupola and

second floor that were removed many years

ago.But there are reasons to doubt the com-

pany’s pledge. For one, C.E. John’s vice president of

development, Thomas A. DiChiara, has

steadfastly refused to clarify or affirm the

company’s position after repeated inquiries

from the Examiner. As explained by project architect Bruce

Brown of GBD Architects at a public

meeting in May, the Besaw’s structure

does not fully contain the restaurant. The

kitchen and storage space extend under

the house to the west. The covered patio

on the north side of the restaurant is to be

removed to create maximum space for the

new building. That means a “saved” Besaw’s

would have to be reconfigured internally to

accommodate cooking and storage needs,

while the seating capacity would be signifi-

cantly reduced internally as well as exter-

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Sandy Stein’s great-great-grandfather built this house at 1715 NW 23rd Ave. in 1885, and developer C.E. John plans to demolish it as part

of a four-story mixed-use project.

JOHN KLICKER

JULY ’11VOLUME 25, ISSUE 11

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Continued on page 20

By Allan ClassenC.E. John Company has become one of the big players on Northwest 23rd Avenue, but how sensitive is the company to the needs of small businesses?Don’t ask Judy Farinha, who’s been oper-ating Tribute’s sandwich shop at Northwest 23rd and Kearney the past 11 years.Because of C.E. John, she suffered a small business owner’s ultimate indignity: learning through the news that she was being evicted. Customers broke the news of her impending closure.According to a report on OregonLive, The Oregonian’s website, C.E. John had leased her space, that of Mio Gelato next door and the former Rose’s—which closed last month—to Bamboo Sushi. The June 7 story said the entire building “would be taken down to the studs … then handed over to Bamboo Sushi for remodeling.”The story also said that Mio Gelato and Tribute’s “have been given notice they will have to leave.”

The last statement was not true; she and Mio Gelato had not been given notice. But without lease protection, she knew C.E. John could have her out in short order. “It blindsided me,” said Farinha, noting that “to hear this from someone else” com-pounded the insult.To put it bluntly: “It sucks.”She admits she was naïve to have gone along with a short-term lease just because C.E. John told her it wanted all leases to expire at the same time. “They were a lot smarter than me,” she said. “They obviously knew what they were doing. Me, not so much.”An online responder (screen name: Cassidy Rae) to the OregonLive story wrote:

C.E. John courts new tenant —claims existing tenants want out

By Allan Classen For three decades, discussion of devel-opment on Northwest 23rd Avenue has started or ended with Richard Singer, whose family holds most of the plum retail locations on the southern half of the street.For the next few years at least, the talk will be all about C.E. John, a Vancou-

ver, Wash., company that already owns two significant commercial corners and is about to build three multi-story, mixed-use projects between Lovejoy and Savier streets.“This is very unusual,” said John Brad-ley, chair of the Northwest District Asso-ciation Planning Committee since the 1990s.

In that time, he cannot remember another developer having three major con-struction projects in the hopper at once. In fact, even Bill Welch, who has served on that committee for 35 years, does not recall any precedent for this scale or speed of development by one party.

Vancouver company has designs on 23rd Avenue

25TH ANNIVERSARY FEATUREThe first five years, 1986-91

and zero social media presence

nada zip

zilch

(can you believe it?!)

And they were about to roll out six mixed-use apartment projects that would transform the urbanscape of NW Portland.

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FRANKLIN IDE2240 NW Lovejoy StFI

L. L. HAWKINSNW 22nd & RaleighLL

BENEVENTO2275 NW Raleigh St

B

SAWYER’S ROWNW 20th & RaleighSR

Their properties fall within a 10-block radius at the north end of Northwest Portland. We set out to highlight the distinct, quiet, cozy vibe that contrasts its bustling counterpart to the south.

Our mission was to inspire a love for the NW neighborhood.

Only after we touted… the shortcut through the woods, the way the streets are named, and the cozy booth in the back

…would we introduce the buildings and the company who developed them.

This type of subtle,

strategy is what C.E. John

(and Green Rising) stands for.

long-term

So, we held the “Perfect Day Contest,”

hello!

YOU’RE INVITED

We'�re throwing a contest for the neighborhood, and

TO JOIN IN THE FUNDescribe your most perfect day in NW PDX by August 31st.

For the winner, we’ll make it come true for two.

Submit your idea on our page: www.franklinide.com/perfect-day-contest

C.E. John Company, a local, family company, focuses on developing properties for the long-haul. Walkability and smart urban design are the pinnacle of thinking long-term, and now we want to know what it means for you. Let’s celebrate one of Portland’s most loved

neighborhood by finding THE perfect day in NW. **See website for contest details.

...WHO WE ARE...

sprinkling posters, postcards, and “hidden gem” scratch-offs in the area to get people thinking of what NW PDX has to offer.

We directed people to the flagship building’s website and Facebook page.

…and had them submit entries like this:

“My day would start out by taking a class at Yoga NW, buy local produce at Food Front, take pictures at the Peculiarorium, get a soy latte at Sterling Coffee Roaster, buy a "zine" at Floating World, play PacMan at Ground Kontrol, throwback a Boneyard IPA, a vegan gyro & a punk band at Slabtown.”

-Evelyn Boling

and we even got this…

!“I awake to a quarter-pounder of a hangover. I stumble out and find the Pizza Schmizza. I head over to the park at NW Johnson with the water and kids playing and lie on the grass. I'm guessing now it's about time to head down to Everyday Music and listen to some Alice in Chains. Then I’m thinking it's time for some foie gras, so I head over to Bluehour and grab an outside table.  I order a finely-aged bottle of chablis, foie gras, and a nice rhubarb gelee.  Unfortunately it comes to bear that I've been talking to a pigeon instead of a waiter and police are asking for my identification.  Thanks for the perfect day!”

With no budget for advertising and a general distrust of developers, it was hard to get traction.

So we bought St. Cupcake sweets and headed to the Ecotrust @ Sundown concerts to capture people’s attention.

To gauge success, we measured

how many people entered:

109

how fast leases were signed ‣ The first, Benevento, was 17% leased by Opening

Day. The 24-unit building sold out in 8 weeks.

‣ The second, Franklin Ide, leased 22% of 92 units by Opening Day.

how the community shifted

JULY ’11VOLUME 25, ISSUE 11

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Continued on page 22

Continued on page 20

inside

By Allan Classen

C.E. John Company has become one of

the big players on Northwest 23rd Avenue,

but how sensitive is the company to the

needs of small businesses?

Don’t ask Judy Farinha, who’s been oper-

ating Tribute’s sandwich shop at Northwest

23rd and Kearney the past 11 years.

Because of C.E. John, she suffered a

small business owner’s ultimate indignity:

learning through the news that she was

being evicted. Customers broke the news of

her impending closure.

According to a report on OregonLive,

The Oregonian’s website, C.E. John had

leased her space, that of Mio Gelato next

door and the former Rose’s—which closed

last month—to Bamboo Sushi. The June

7 story said the entire building “would be

taken down to the studs … then handed

over to Bamboo Sushi for remodeling.”

The story also said that Mio Gelato and

Tribute’s “have been given notice they will

have to leave.”The last statement was not true; she and

Mio Gelato had not been given notice. But

without lease protection, she knew C.E.

John could have her out in short order.

“It blindsided me,” said Farinha, noting

that “to hear this from someone else” com-

pounded the insult.

To put it bluntly: “It sucks.”

She admits she was naïve to have gone

along with a short-term lease just because

C.E. John told her it wanted all leases to

expire at the same time.

“They were a lot smarter than me,” she

said. “They obviously knew what they were

doing. Me, not so much.”

An online responder (screen name: Cas-

sidy Rae) to the OregonLive story wrote:

“I was at Tribute’s for lunch today and

came across this story. They had no idea of

the timeline, they haven’t been given notice

C.E. John courts

new tenant —claims existing

tenants want out

By Allan Classen

For three decades, discussion of devel-

opment on Northwest 23rd Avenue has

started or ended with Richard Singer,

whose family holds most of the plum retail

locations on the southern half of the street.

For the next few years at least, the talk

will be all about C.E. John, a Vancou-

ver, Wash., company that already owns

two significant commercial corners and is

about to build three multi-story, mixed-

use projects between Lovejoy and Savier

streets.“This is very unusual,” said John Brad-

ley, chair of the Northwest District Asso-

ciation Planning Committee since the

1990s.

In that time, he cannot remember

another developer having three major con-

struction projects in the hopper at once.

In fact, even Bill Welch, who has served

on that committee for 35 years, does not

recall any precedent for this scale or speed

of development by one party.

Vancouver company has

designs on 23rd Avenue

25TH ANNIVERSARY FEATURE

The first five years, 1986-91

From being depicted as a bulldozer…

‣ being described by words like “high design,” “transparent,” and “integrity”

‣ the historian and journalist who was their harshest critic donating streetcar rails for art, presenting slideshows at openings, and submitting an entry to our contest!

TO…

and lastly, perhaps most importantly, sentiments like this from our client…

“I had several people tell me how great our branding and approach in the neighborhood has been over the last few years, especially in comparison to the years prior. I think that is a testament to the work that GRM has done for the company brand…We appreciate the good work you have done for us.”

Tom DiChiara Senior Vice President of Development C.E. John Company