Lofted back into dorm life Singles' social life in the Pearl District's condos and lofts is like party time at college

Tuesday, February 01, 2005
SU-JIN YIM

Twenty-six-year-old Felicia Mak spends so much time traipsing between her neighbors' homes that she bought special footwear.

Instead of pulling on street shoes, the outgoing software developer slips on flip-flops or sandals to shuffle back and forth on the third floor of The Avenue Lofts in the Pearl District. The two sets of shoes are a necessity, Mak says, for a lifestyle that's as constantly social as living in her old college dorm.

If Mak isn't running over to Jen Taft's loft so the two can head for the gym, then the 27-year-old Taft is knocking on Mak's door just to chat. Two doors down, Duane McDowell, 41, says he knows that "at 4 p.m. your phone's going to start ringing. Happy hour? Happy hour? Happy hour?"

With friends like these, who wouldn't want to live in the burgeoning Pearl, where buildings like The Avenue, The Edge Lofts and Park Place Condominiums have become almost like adult dorms for singletons and childless couples -- minus the hallway vomit and group bathrooms.

To be sure, dorm life is a distant memory for most people in the Pearl District, which has its share of empty nesters as well as neighbors who simply like to keep to themselves. But some residents are re-creating the casual collegiate culture where neighbors run across the hall for a snack or a chat, play with the slightest hint of possible romance and join in the group camaraderie of events like the recent ice storm.

"I've never had this happen. It is totally like a dorm," Taft says, laughing. "We're kind of old for that."

Not anymore. Modern life for single adults is now filled with symbols of extended adolescence, such as late nights out and impromptu group dinners. Energy and time that in the past went to a spouse and kids and TV instead gets spread among a group of friends. And it's not just for the young anymore. Once the domain almost exclusively of twentysomethings, for some this lifestyle now reaches into their 30s and beyond.

While some observers may view this as an attempt to stave off the responsibilities of adulthood, others see something much more positive: the kind of healthy, connected community that planners have talked about for years as a signature benefit of high-density, urban development.

Mak and her immediate neighbors all moved to The Avenue, which opened in August, to escape suburbs, where they owned much larger homes and where they sometimes felt disconnected from their communities. They all say they instantly found themselves more socially connected in their new surroundings.

"I think I was addicted to my neighbors when we first started (getting together)," says Mak, who hosted a small New Year's Eve party for her neighbors. "Eric (one of her neighbors) would leave my place, and five minutes later I'd wonder what Jen's doing, and 'knock, knock, knock.' "

At The Edge, a 123-unit building that also houses outdoor gear company REI, some seventh-floor neighbors started 7th at 7, a monthly gathering at 7 p.m. Sundays for dinner or a play. A few of them even bought season tickets together at Artists Repertory Theatre, says married resident Lisa Paul Heydet, 31.

At Park Place Condominiums, where recent data shows 39 percent of residents are 40 or younger, Craig Davis, 28, says he has been soliciting interest for "a progressive-type dinner, bouncing between people's units."

Just like the first dorm experience at college, the newness of the Pearl engenders friendliness. And it helps that single and young people with plenty of discretionary time and money are moving into the area, thanks to its trendy shops and residences, as well as low interest rates that make it more affordable, says Heydet, a Realtor.

Of course, having constant entertainment right across the hall has its downsides, too. Taft laments, happily, that she never gets to bed on time anymore.

Giovanni Bencomo, 30, jokingly says living in his building has created a minor personal problem.

"Before I moved into The Edge building, I had gotten really good at being on my own and doing lots of stuff on my own," says Bencomo, who used to live in Miami. "Now I just can't handle being on my own. It's a bad vice."

To get personal time, all you have to do is not answer the door or the phone, The Avenue crowd agrees, but be ready for some ribbing.

At a recent gathering at Bluehour, even the waiter had heard that McDowell, who owns his own catering company, had failed to answer his door twice the previous weekend.

Another downside: Bencomo, who moved to Portland almost two years ago, senses he's missing out on the rest of the city by being so Pearl-centric.

Recently, he and his girlfriend went to an eastside restaurant and joked, "Ooh, we're venturing out."

"I hear the North Mississippi area is booming, and I hardly spend any time there," Bencomo says. "We do miss out on a lot of the other attractions Portland has to offer."

The attractions of staying near home, however, can be pretty strong.

Bencomo says he's dated a little in his building and a lot in the Pearl. "If I'm in the Pearl, any given day I'll run into somebody (I've dated)," he says, though he insists there are no Melrose Place-like ex-love tantrums.

"We're able to be civil and social and nice about it all," he says.

Of course, Pearl denizens are well aware that hook-ups could lead to relationships, which could lead to marriage and eventually kids, making Heydet wonder about the next phase of life in the Pearl District buildings.

"What will it be in five years, when all these young people moving in start getting married, having kids and moving out? Who will move in?" she asks.

Maybe she shouldn't worry. After all, there's always a new class of freshmen.