PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A giant cedar tree not far from Multnomah Village was removed on Tuesday, July 19 in one step toward building 2 homes on the existing lot.
The 80-foot-tall tree in the 7300 block of SW 33rd Avenue had activists trying to save it from being removed.
Neighbors tried to fight the change, even considering raising money to buy the lot from the developer, but like other projects around Portland, they couldn’t fight it fast enough. Neighbors say they were told it would be a while before the tree was cut down, then heard chainsaws Tuesday morning.
“It was a sleazy deal,” said neighbor Sammy Black. “The house was sold under the pretense of saving the tree. And then it was resold and that was eliminated from the contract.”
The Portland Tribune reported in April the lot was sold on Feb. 24, then re-sold 2 weeks later to Renaissance Homes for $450,000. Renaissance President Randy Sebastian told the Portland Tribune his company plans to split the lot, demolish the existing home and build two 2,200- to 2,300-square-foot homes — each selling for around $800,000.
The owners of Renaissance Homes have not yet returned the request for comment.
Filed under: Civic Affairs, Editor's Pick, Environment, Multnomah County, Portland
