When three people say "you know, you really ought to talk to _____," I suggest you get in touch. Today I had an informational interview with my new hero Eli Spevak, owner of Orange Splot, LLC. He's agreed to take me on as an unpaid intern!
Eli is a graduate of the Masters of Urban and Regional Planning program I'm doing at Portland State University. He's now a real estate developer, specializing in small-scale, community-oriented, infill and retrofit projects. The communities he builds are so breathtakingly beautiful that I truly stopped in my tracks the first time I saw one. This was my first day in Portland when I went for a long walk and was drawn off my intended route by catching sight of Sabin Green out of the corner of my eye. I was determined to find the builder, so imagine my delight when I finally looked up Eli and Sabin Green was one of the first things I found on his website! (Go to Orange Splot and click on projects and then Sabin Green to see what I'm talking about.)
Eli is fascinated by small spaces like I am and he has coordinated tiny house tours in the past. Recently he's been pretty busy with other projects (like a cohousing community called Cully Grove, just ten blocks from my house). So we're going to brainstorm ways that I can help out, which just might include organizing a tiny house tour.
Meanwhile, Dee Williams of PAD Tiny Houses has been trying to rally tiny housers in Portland since there are quite a few of us now and we haven't had a chance to meet each other. I hope that when these two worlds come crashing together something amazing happens!