By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews
WALDPORT – Foundation work is underway for eight new luxury townhomes on a vacant lot in the heart of Waldport.
The three-story units are being built on less than a half-acre on Northwest Huckleberry Street by Chad Berry, who purchased the property for $225,000 in January 2023. Berry built two homes in the Bayshore community north of Waldport in 2021 and 2023.
“They know the area and they wanted to stay in the area,” said Waldport city planner Jaime White. “The property is zoned downtown district so it does allow for high-density commercial-residential with a no setbacks situation so they were able to really maximize the property.”
Berry plans to use the townhomes as short-term rentals. Waldport has no limits on the number of short-term rentals it allows.
Because the townhomes are staying under Berry’s ownership, White said they went through the permitting process fairly easily.
“The building is angled so every (townhome) has a view of the bay,” White said. “It’s got a scalloped edge … so they stagger-step a little so they will all have a view from their back deck of the river.”
Downtown potential
Ten units were originally planned for the .15-acre site but those plans were altered after Berry learned of an easement needed to give right-of-way to the vacant lot immediately north of his property.
Each townhome will consist of two stories above 300-square-foot garages. They range in size from 2,400 square feet closest to Alsea Bay to 1,690 square feet for the middle six units, and 2,000-square-feet on the east end.
The floor plans have two rooms adjacent to the first-floor garages with stairs leading to the living areas, kitchens and a single bedroom on the second floor and three bedrooms on the top floor.
When completed next March or April, Berry said the units will rent for between $400 and $500 a night.
Berry said there have been no challenges with the build, the city has been welcoming and “great to work with,” and that he loves the layout of downtown Waldport.
“I just feel like there’s so much potential there,” he said. “They are putting in the park and they just put in the docks. And there is a lot of land that is undeveloped, especially down by where we are. It’s perfect. I just don’t understand why Yachats and Newport are so popular but Waldport isn’t. It’s a very special place.”
Berry said he has more projects in mind for the city if they are welcomed and believes the townhome project is a good start.
“Ultimately I think it’s going to look awesome and I’m super excited because I think it’s going to set a precedent and hopefully it draws more projects that are similar to mine,” he said.
Passersby of Berry’s project have speculated on social media about the large land-clearing on two adjacent parcels to the south on the old Waldport middle school site and an adjoining property to its west fronting the bay shore.
Those properties, which encompass 2.55-acres sandwiched in part between Northwest Cedar, Spring and John streets as well as the bay, are owned by a family trust registered in Corvallis. There are no plans on file with the city for its development, White said. But there were discussions dating back to 2008 about some sort of mixed use that might include a restaurant and brewpub and open-air space with food carts as well as possible condominiums or housing.
A worker clearing brush and topsoil from the site Tuesday said he heard there were plans for a parking lot with food trucks, an office, camping cabins and a putt-putt golf course. Those speculations, however, could not be confirmed.
- Garret Jaros is YachatsNews’ full-time reporter and can be reached at GJaros@YachatsNews.com
Just what we need on a coast which can’t house its daily workers: 8 more Air BnBs going for $400 a night.
Exactly!
It’s all about the money for the city. I get it. Praying someone would consider building condos/homes for the citizens of Waldport (and nearby residents) affordable places to live. It’s really a shame.
This is awful. Toledo and Waldport are the only towns that refuse to commit to affordable living complexes. Instead, it’s all about tax revenues for the city. Our city council doesn’t communicate with its residents on any government site and really doesn’t care about their opinions anyways. It should be a bedroom community for locals, not a tourist city.
Yet they keep getting elected.
Waldport needs a new mayor and new city manager. Investing in STRs is a horrible form of revenue anywhere in Lincoln County right now.
Where is the much needed affordable housing?
More short term rentals does not help support one of the coasts most needed housing problems.
This does not make me smile.
$400-500 a night? Where are the affordable rentals? Seems like the city council has completely abdicated their responsibility to the voters and long term residents.
I’m re-thinking my position on this after speaking with the City Manager. I would like to see more “affordable” housing of course, but it’s not as easy to build as you would think. I deleted some of my FaceBook comments after looking into this more deeply. I think we need a new paradigm in the state for financing workforce housing and building it in a manner that does not skimp on quality. Please take a moment to read this excellent article by Public Banking’s Ellen Brown, who makes a strong case for how states can save their economies by learning from The Bank of North Dakota- the country’s only true public state bank. We could get public bank financing to support workforce/affordable housing projects and more. The Bank of North Dakota never went into the red as many banks did, during the last Great Recession. North Dakota did it. Other states have pending legislations to do it, so can we. The article is about California, but much of it applies to the rest of the country. https://publicbankinginstitute.substack.com/p/tackling-californias-budget-crisis
The Bank of North Dakota has done wonders for the economy in North Dakota. They have financed a lot of businesses and provided low interest rates creating a thriving economy for North Dakota.
That’s right Dwayne. After the Loma Prieta earthquake, the rebuild of portions of the SF Bay Bridge cost a whopping $6.5 Billion. About half of that cost was traditional interest payments. Had California had a BND type bank, much of that interest cost could have been eliminated. Just think about how that could help our stressed public services, affordable housing costs, student and small business loans.
What a shame more short term rentals. Why doesn’t the whole coast offer middle income housing for people who decide to work for their community. Where are they supposed to live? Your school teacher, your medical assistant. We are paying a big price. I am hoping for a better future. This is not the answer.
I have questions about the wisdom of building up-scale rental properties in Waldport instead of affordable housing as expressed in many of the comments from the community. I also wonder if anyone is speaking with geologists about how to put foundations in sand in a flood plane when predictions are pretty clear about sea level rise endangering low lying lands in climate disruptions. Who would insure such structures for flood insurance? Would Waldport be better off relocating to high ground as the schools have done? I have to own that my Sunday School teachings as a kid used images of “a fool” who built his house on the sand while a wise man built his house on ‘the rock.’ I know this was a metaphor for values and spiritual stability but I find myself wondering if this is also a practical teaching in this reality as well? My hope is that city and county decision makers are not dazzled by $$$ for “short term gain” but planning pro-actively for what is needed right now, and how we as a community may be challenged to keep residents safe and services effective and available as our “normal” changes on this planet.
Such a shame and waste of property. The land there would have been put to better use if these homes were for the locals instead. Short term rentals are not the way to go. Our town will probably be a ghost town, eventually the locals will have to relocate some where and drive here to come to be able to work in Waldport. Terrible decision making for the town. I understand, its his property, their legal right to build whatever. But the secret to a town are its inhabitants that live there. What good is it if people can’t find a place to live?
Another trickle down effect when your STR-tourist/workforce housing is out of whack is there is a high amount of people/property owners who do not live in your area yet expect and use many of the same services workforce/full time residents do…..but, there is a much more limited workforce partly because affordable because housing is limited due to the STR/vacation home effect.
And never give me the argument STR/vacation homes are beachfront McMansions locals can’t afford anyway (this elitist and dismissive argument has been used many times). STR’s come in every size and price range. Generally, if any home is within walking distance or a short drive to the beach, it has potential to be used or is being used as a vacation rental.
Let me express a more radical viewpoint here. Why the heck is anybody building any kind of residential building in the tsunami zone? Almost no one wants to listen to this idea, but it’s about time coastal Oregon starts thinking about the concept of strategic retreat in its development policies before we experience a repeat of 2011 in Japan. Anyone who doesn’t know what I’m talking about should go to YouTube, search for Japan tsunami 2011 and watch at least a half dozen videos. Then tell me how bright it is to keep putting homes in the tsunami zone.
I’m confused. A private developer is building on private land – and literally said the city has been ‘great to work with’. Why are so many then attacking the city? Especially so many who live outside the city? It’s not like this took housing away from anyone. It’s someone investing in the community.
I live in Bayshore and would love to be part of Waldport. Our county planning department is barely open, but Waldport is open all week. Their Council is rarely fighting in the paper, and I can walk into city hall and speak with anyone without an appointment. Try doing the same up north. They seem to be building more for people than in the previous 15 years I’ve lived here.
The lack of workforce housing is a real problem. But all I see is people complaining and trying to limit other people’s rights. Instead, put together an investment group and build some.
It really hurts us to see ourt nice community here in Waldport take the path of other tourist traps along parts of the coast. That’s why we love it here is for the small town charm and this type of industry will ruin our town if this continues in the future. Wake up everyone and stand up and fight to keep our town what it has been for so many years and don’t let the high rollars take it away from us.