Occupied Renovation

Location: 523 SW 13th Ave, Portland, OR 97205

Dates: May 2022 – August 2022

Status: Completed

Alder House Apartments is a building in downtown Portland owned by Community Partners for Affordable Housing (CPAH), containing 138 efficiency studios. Peregrine Relocations assisted them with an occupied renovation project, coming on to help after the building had already been under construction for two years. Peregrine was contracted to assist with prepping for the installation of a new sprinkler system. This piece of the rehab project was an occupied renovation, and the work was done while tenants occupied their units.

Installation of the new sprinklers took between 1 and 3 days per unit, depending on the location of the apartment within the floor plan of the building. Tenants were encouraged but not required to leave their units while construction was working. Peregrine Relocations collaborated with LMC Construction, Guardian Management, and the Center for Positive Aging to provide support to the residents. This support included the careful handling of tenant belongings to provide space for the construction team to work, and providing tenants with options of activities or places to go while the installations were completed. Peregrine Relocations came up with a tenant relocation plan and was able to furnish several vacant apartments for use as respite rooms, allowing tenants a quiet space to relax and keep their pets safe while work was completed in their unit.

Occupied renovations are always tricky balancing acts

Trying to meet the diverse needs of tenants in order to keep them comfortable in their home, while creating the space that Construction needs in order to do their work, is always a balancing act. These kinds of projects are common for smaller scale rehabs, or situations where replacement housing isn’t an option.

Phased construction can be a crucial part of the occupied renovation process, especially if some units in the building are empty, allowing for their use as temporary housing for tenants. As each phase progresses and is completed, tenants are moved with their possessions into, and then back home from, these temporary units. Peregrine helps them get packed, moved, and set up comfortably both in their temporary housing, and home again when construction is done.

Clear communication is essential in helping tenants during the renovation process. We keep them informed of work schedules, the dates of their moves, potential noise, water or electricity shut offs, and other disruptions that happen as the result of construction. Our role is to keep the disruption to residents’ lives to a minimum.