Pacific University recently expanded its land ownership by purchasing three properties on Sunset Drive. These properties, located at address 2342, 2352 and 2410, were short-sale homes acquired by the university at reduced cost.
According to Vice President of Finance Mike Mallery, the properties in the 2300 block are slated to become the new home of Facilities Management, which is currently located on a leased parcel of land on Cedar Street near the tennis courts.
The houses on those properties will be demolished to allow for new buildings and the move of the department to occur over the coming summer.
While more expensive initially, owning the land will reduce costs to the university and, according the Mallery, at least one of the purchases was made possible by donations from the Board of Trustees.
The Sunset properties are a “better location, closer to campus,” said Mallery. “They will also increase storage and make a more effective use of space for university programs.”
Director of Facilities and Safety Management Harold Roark believed the house at the 2400 address would be renovated and used for student activities or housing.
Pacific faces the problem of being “land-locked” in Forest Grove, often unable to expand.
While the recession and down-trodden economy have placed many local properties such as these on the market, most sellers in the area know that they can inflate their price because the university is looking to buy.
Mallery said that the university takes advantage of what sales it can and considers many that do not result in a new acquisition “missed opportunities” for the expansion of programs.
Leave a Reply