Engineer appeals height permit for 116-apartment Basalt Commons to TD Council tonight, July 22
Rendering of Basalt Commons a 116 apartment building with commercial space on the ground floor has been approved for construction in downtown The Dalles. The building would take full use of the half-acre lot currently occupied by the former Griffith Motors building, 523 E. Third Street.
By Tom Peterson
The Dalles, Ore., July 22, 2024 — The Dalles City Council will hear an appeal of a conditional use permit for the Basalt Commons, a mixed-use building for business and 116 apartments proposed for the former Griffth Motors, a half-acre lot at 523 E. Third Street.
The hearing is set for tonight, July 22 after 5:30 p.m.
The project requires a mammoth effort in logistics and financing and must also receive approvals from the city; however, if developers persevere to bring it to fruition, it could bring hundreds of new residents downtown who are looking for goods and services - food and entertainment, groceries and gas.
It’s a calculated risk that could anchor the east side, which is now home to a new grocery in The Farm Stand as the urban renewal board seeks new development on the Tony’s Town & Country site.
Is The Dalles on the edge of major change?
Architect Chris Hodney has already received conditional approval for the construction of the 96,000-square-foot building, the largest to be added to The Dalles Downtown in more than 100 years.
The Commodore II at 312 Court Street is about half the size of the Basalt Commons project.
To understand the size of this project, The Commodore II building at 312 Court Street is approximately half the size of what is proposed. The Commodore was built in 1906, is 60 feet high, and has 48,800 square feet on a quarter-acre lot, according to LoopNet.com, a commercial property listing website.
Public Hearing
The public hearing is coming after the City’s Planning Commission approved a conditional-use permit, allowing the building to be 60 feet tall - 5 feet more than the standard limitation. That decision was made on August 11, 2022, at the request of the developers Mary and Michael Hanlon who are seeking to create commercial space similar to what already exists in other downtown buildings.
Dan Meader who lives on East Seventh Street with a view of downtown will have to look at the building if it is constructed. The engineer is now appealing that decision to the City Council, stating “The City is using the wrong process to allow this project to move forward. The Land Use Action required in this instance requires a Variance and cannot be allowed to move forward with a Conditional Use Permit with no standards.”
Meader also made claims of bias in the original decision and noted “other issues” that may be addressed at the hearing.”
More on Housing
The development could exceed $10 million in investment and give the east part of the Dalles an economic shot in the arm by spurring additional improvements while also adding to the housing stock.
People can wait for months attempting to find a rental in the Dalles. It is not uncommon for a 1-bedroom, 1-bath go for $1,100 a month plus deposits with a requirement of paying for the first and last month’s rent upfront.
Unused Space Downtown
The former Griffith Motors building has mostly sat vacant for more than a decade since the dealership moved out to West Sixth Street.
And you don’t have to look far in downtown The Dalles to find empty buildings or vacant second-story spaces such as the Pioneer Building at NE corner of Court and Second streets.
Despite the City’s and Mid-Columbia Economic Development District’s efforts to incentivize the revitalization of apartments on the second floor in downtown buildings, not many have come to fruition. Jen and Travis Dillard made the biggest contribution on this account, 9 apartments to the second story of the Honald Building built in 1910 at 300 Federal Street.
The Basalt Commons has the potential to exponentially grow housing in one fell swoop, with the addition of 116 apartments.
It’s the biggest project to come along since Legacy Development gained approval in 2021 for 80 housing units at The Grove, a housing project at the corner of 12th and Richmond streets in east The Dalles. That project has yet to start.
Proponents of the Basalt Commons say it will put more people downtown and increase foot traffic while redeveloping new commercial space.
However, multiple business owners operating in the downtown corridor were opposed to the project two years ago, and the idea appears to be hotly contested by some in The Dalles downtown retail district.
Does it all come down to parking?
As currently designed, Basalt Commons has plans for 35 parking stalls that would be located near the alley between Third and Second streets. However, estimates from the traffic study commissioned by the developers show a need of between 145 and 199 during peak hours for residents and commercial uses - a restaurant and business offices in this scenario.
Developers are looking to public parking lots and on-street parking to fill the gap.
And this is the bone of contention most talk about when it comes to the project.
Two years ago Warren Sawyer owner of Sawyers Hardware told planning commissioners, that he was opposed to the height request. His business sits across the street from where Basalt Commons will be constructed.
Sawyer said there were not enough parking spaces. And during public comments four other downtown business operators, including State. Rep. Daniel Bonham (R-The Dalles), also said they were opposed to the project based on a lack of parking.
There is more than sufficient parking when looking at both parking lot and on-street parking uses, according to a study that was conducted at the request of the developers.
For example, the public parking lot at First and Federal Streets has over 100 parking spots and is a three-and-a-half minute walk to Basalt Commons over two blocks. See video above.
The used parking lot across the street from the Basalt Commons site seen here is expected to be a finished public parking lot later this fall.
In addition, the City of The Dalles and Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal have partnered on a new parking lot kitty-corner from the Basalt Commons that will have 20 plus parking spots when it is finished this fall.
The study also took a look at on-street parking use within 3-block radius of the development, finding 789 parking spots that were 47 percent occupied at the peak hour of 1 p.m. on a weekday.
Additionally, the City’s approval for the construction of Basalt Commons states that “no tenant of the development, commercial or residential, may park along the E. 3rd Street and Laughlin Street frontages between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. All violators will be towed at their own expense.”
Editorial: The real rub - Tom Peterson
People who already work and or live in The Dalles have set their expectations about parking. And the thought of that changing or fears of it getting worse sets off anxiety - enough to oppose the project for some.
Generally, drivers are looking for the closest parking spot to their destination, myself included. Some will break the rules to be closer. And if they have to walk an extra distance, their expectations have been violated.
It makes people mad. Simple as that. Because it took more time than our brains are used to.
“Why are we impatient? It’s a heritage from our evolution,” says Marc Wittmann, a psychologist at the Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health in Freiburg, Germany. Wittman made this comment in Why Your Brains Hates Slowpokes by Chelsea Wald. “Impatience made sure we didn’t die from spending too long on a single unrewarding activity,” Wittman is quoted. “It gave us the impulse to act.”
Support Local News
Available to everyone. Funded by readers.
