MURA takes aim at blight along N. Riverside
Published 6:00 am Monday, June 26, 2023
- A housing and redevelopment project planned along Riverside Avenue near Pacific Survey Supply and La Fiesta may become much larger with the inclusion of eight more lots by the Medford Urban Renewal Agency.
The Medford Urban Renewal Agency Board Thursday pushed ahead with the possible transformation of a number of properties in the low-income Liberty Park neighborhood north of downtown.
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Two properties at 608 and 618 Beatty Street will be purchased over the next two months, the board decided unanimously.
“618 is a blighted property, not fit for habitation,” said Harry Weiss, executive director of MURA.
Lot line and right-of-way issues will have to be dealt with on the properties as well.
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“There are some very messy problems,” Weiss said.
MURA authorized purchasing 618 Beatty for $160,000, a deal scheduled to close June 30.
The 608 Beatty property would be purchased for $239,500, which should close sometime in July.
MURA hopes to attract a private developer to create housing or some other kind of development on the properties.
In other action, the board, made up of eight city councilors, unanimously authorized MURA staff to continue negotiations that could add up to eight more lots around La Fiesta Restaurant.
The proposal could lead to a Mexican market, apartment complex, pedestrian bridge over Bear Creek and a new storm drain system that will help clean up the creek.
MURA previously bought the former Pacific Survey Supply property at 908-920 N. Riverside Ave., for $1,275,000 and has spent about $95,000 for demolition to prepare the site for redevelopment.
A land swap deal is in the works with Esteban Gonzalez, who owns a 1.68-acre property along Bear Creek. MURA wants to exchange the 1.06-acre Pacific Supply property for Gonzalez’s land, so that he can build a 17,000-square-foot Mexican market close to Riverside.
Other adjacent property owners who have expressed an interest in selling their lots include those owned by Kids Unlimited, Jackson County and from the Douglas Dunn living trust.
The swath of properties extends from 824 to 1014 North Riverside.
MURA will begin negotiations, which could lead to the purchase of some or all of the parcels.
Kids Unlimited’s property houses its administrative offices and would need a different location if a deal is reached with MURA.
A new stormwater treatment facility could also be built on the properties, treating the water and improving water quality before it dumps into the creek. The city has already set aside $500,000 toward this project.
Untreated storm water currently flows directly into the creek from a 60-acre area of the city to the west of Riverside.
The piping for the new storm drain system would run underneath a proposed pedestrian and bike trail that would lead through the development to a pedestrian bridge over the creek.
Another potential project located on the properties, which require a partnership with a developer, is an apartment complex of about 45 units, though this could become a bigger project if the additional land is purchased.
The redevelopment area along Riverside Avenue would expand from just over 2.5 acres to more than 6 acres if MURA obtains all the properties.