At the June 7th House Revenue Committee work session, the committee chair, Representative Nancy Nathanson, decided not to move HB 2447 forward. This decision ends the bill moving in this 2021 legislative session. Special Assessment - Oregon's only state incentive to rehabilitate historic homes and commercial buildings - is set to expire in 2022. Rep Nathanson cited unanswered questions as to the impact of Special Assessment and whether it was the right tool to equitably incentivize preservation going forward. She appointed a legislative work group to research these questions and report back in November, with the intent of introducing a revised bill in the 2022 short legislative session.

While Restore Oregon supported the extension of Special Assessment, we have long stated that Oregon would be better served by other types of financial incentives such as a state historic tax credit, seismic tax credit, or expanded grant programs that better leverage the potential for restoration and reuse to create housing, avoid displacement and loss of cultural heritage, invigorate Main Streets, and curb emissions. Advocating for effective incentives is always a priority for Restore Oregon.

A primary contributing building in the Portland New Chinatown-Japantown Historic District, the historic Yamaguchi Hotel/former Blanchet House has seen better days, and now stands alone surrounded by surface parking lots.  

A demolition application has been filed with the City of Portland which Restore Oregon and a coalition of organizations plan to oppose. Why? The importance of the building lies not in its architecture, but in its deep connection to the Japanese American, Asian American, and Pacific Islander communities. 

Statewide, as far as we can assess, there are only three historic resources associated with AAPI cultural heritage: the Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site, Salem Pioneer Cemetery and Portland’s New Chinatown-Japantown Historic District where the Yamaguchi Hotel is located. Stricken by demolitions in earlier decades, this small, 10-block district cannot afford to lose another key historic resource.   

Built around 1905, the Yamaguchi Hotel is one of only a handful of buildings still standing in the historic district that was owned by Japanese Americans at a time when people of Asian heritage were ostracized and afforded limited rights. According to the National Register of Historic Places district nomination, Mr. Yamaguchi’s wife served as the midwife for the Asian community, and is said to have delivered babies as far away as Hood River. This under-appreciated chapter of Oregon’s women's history is crucial to preserve for its cultural significance. Also according to the nomination, the hotel became the Old Ship Zion Seaman’s Mission in 1934, launching many decades of providing social services for Portland’s most needy citizens. This history, too, deserves to be recognized and valued.

We believe there is an alternate solution that could retain the structure and incorporate its important and and untold stories into planned development for the rest of the block. Future development has not yet been approved, so now is the time to find a “win-win” solution.

Restore Oregon, working with the Japanese American and AAPI community, can offer our deep expertise in historic redevelopment planning, design, financing, and creative problem solving required for historic projects.   

The building’s demolition application will be reviewed at a Landmarks Commission meeting next Monday, June 14th (register to attend and/or give testimony).  Currently, the application is scheduled at the City Council for a vote on June 30th. (Submit testimony by emailing cctestimony@portlandoregon.gov).  

It's not every day that a historic place embodies so many different aspects of Oregon’s cultural history:  AAPI history, women's history, and social services history. Those who want to see the Yamaguchi Hotel live on are encouraged to make their voices heard!