Former Gladys McCoy Building Gets Major Overhaul

PORTLAND, OR—In what represents UrbanRenaissance Group’s third major historic renovation in the Portland market, the Seattle-based commercial real estate firm and real estate private equity firm Gaw Capital USA have begun the renovation program and rebranding of the former Gladys McCoy building. The renovation project is slated for completion in June 2020.

The 10-story historic building has 100,000 square feet of commercial space at 426 Southwest Harvey Milk St. in the central business district. It was purchased through a joint venture partnership between URG and Gaw from seller Multnomah County for $9.85 million in December 2018.

Going forward, the building will be known as the JK Gill building, in honor of the original owner and tenant of the building, the JK Gill Company, an office supply company specializing in books and school supplies. The company operated mainly in the Pacific Northwest and at its peak, employed more than 500 people. It occupied the building for more than 60 years.

“We’re very pleased to re-introduce the JK Gill name to the Portland office market,” said Tom Kilbane, URG vice president, regional general manager. “JK Gill was the largest distributor of books in the Northwest and the go-to place for school supplies for generations of Portlanders.”

The legacy of Gladys McCoy will live on with Multnomah County naming its newly constructed building the Gladys McCoy Health Department headquarters, located at the west base of the Broadway Bridge. Following the county’s move-out, URG will embark on a complete renovation of the fully vacant JK Gill building, including an expanded and renovated building lobby with cafe, upgraded elevators, new high-efficiency HVAC system, plumbing and electrical; new storefront glass, doors, canopies and exterior paint; re-commissioning of operable windows, new gender-neutral restrooms; spa-grade showers, lockers and tenant lounge; secure bike storage for 100 bicycles, and a fitness center.

“The new storefronts and double-height space on the ground floor will have a striking effect at the corner of SW 5th and SW Harvey Milk, and create an attractive opportunity for a tenant seeking visible, dramatic space with branding opportunity,” said Travis Drilling of URG.

In addition to the ground-floor improvements, an 800-square-foot skylight will be introduced to the top floor as a key feature, adding significant natural light.

Trevor Kafoury, Al Kennedy and Autumn Brice from CBRE have been selected as the leasing team to represent the building.

“At Urban Renaissance Group, we’re focused on investing in transformative developments in our communities. The JK Gill building was a major presence in Portland’s central business district when it was first constructed,” Kilbane tells GlobeSt.com. “We’re excited to be moving forward with its renovation—highlighting original features of the building like high ceilings and operable windows, and introducing new features and amenities like skylights, a high-end bike parking/shower/locker facility and unisex restrooms throughout.”

URG completed the repositioning of the former Oregonian newspaper headquarters in 2016, much of which was leased to Elemental Technologies. URG and Gaw USA previously completed major renovations of The Yeon Building, a 128,000-square-foot historic office building that is now occupied by a variety of technology, design and engineering firms.

The office market in the Portland metro area remained robust through the first six months of 2019, according to a report by Kidder Mathews. Vacancy rates dropped slightly, while rental rates continued the upward trajectory that began in first quarter 2012. Second quarter was overall a less active quarter, as the market appeared to be waiting for the more than 2 million square feet of office space still in the development pipeline. Yet, investment in Portland office property rebounded nicely in second quarter and pushed the average price per square foot to a new all-time high, says the report.