A Spendy "Save" in Irvington

 

Many of us love our historic neighborhoods, but few of us have the knowledge or gumption to improve them.  One who does is contractor/designer John McCulloch, who has a deep understanding of Portland’s historic residential architecture.

In the past several years, McCulloch has purchased and restored several historic homes in Laurelhurst, Irvington and Lake Oswego.  His best-known project is likely the Markham house in Laurelhurst, which he saved from demolition after its proposed demolition had become grounds for public protests.

 McCulloch’s latest achievement is the complete remodel of a 1923 English cottage-style house in Irvington, shown above.  The rolled roofing at the eaves is a nod to historic English thatched roofs; the roof gables, under-sized dormers and multi-paned windows also are essential to the English cottage style.

When McCulloch bought the house, the attic was unfinished and many of the original details on the main floor had been removed.  Overall, the condition of the house was somewhere between poor and worse, according to a neighbor.  It offered McCulloch what amounted to a blank palette.

Given his understanding of historic interior design, someone walking inside today won’t realize that the interior is new from the bare studs.  Upstairs, McCulloch added additional bedrooms (one with skylights) and a bathroom.

You can see details of the project here:

https://www.mccullochconstruction.com/portfolio/the-enchanting-cottage

 As one can tell from the price tag and his earlier projects, McCulloch is renovating elegant homes for high-end buyers.  By adding a sunken firepit, a deck and seating for an outdoor theater, McCulloch has turned this house into far more of a show  place than it was ever intended to be.  But by saving the original envelope and adding many interesting and even amazing details, he likely has added many decades of successful life to a highly worthy residence.   

While work was in progress.  Retaining wall and fencing are new. 

McCulloch puts  a lot of thought into his renovation decisions. In this case, he even explored the possibility of a real thatched roof.  Given the overwhelming expense, he opted for hand-shaped cedar shingles, instead.  The empty attic offered him several interesting design options to please adults and children.  He shares many of his ideas in a video here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpslaHLGVqw&t=447s

It is important to realize that McCulloch knows more about housing issues than restoring high-end homes.  He also has been working on projects concerning housing affordability and homelessness.  He calls his approach the “sharewell model,” in which existing houses are purchased and renovated to house about five people who share a common issue.  The tenants would pay rents far below average, while having access to group meetings and mentors to help them try to succeed.

 The solution to houselessness, he says, is one that public officials never seem to understand: The most affordable housing is housing that already exists. 

 McCulloch paid for a bungalow in Lake Oswego to house single mothers.  He hoped to generate revenue to buy more houses with money from people with retirement accounts in search of investments that have public benefits.  He told me recently that COVID has slowed his recruiting for sharewell donors.

 He said the concept of shared “micro communities” is a better solution than large housing projects that can become centers for crime and drugs because the only shared issue is poverty.  The shared concerns in micro communities, he said, encourage residents to “help each other succeed.”

It is rare, indeed, to find a developer actively working at both ends of the affordability spectrum.

 ---Fred Leeson

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