This spring, Pinch will move out of Portland's Pearl District (where we've been, in one space or another, for fifteen years) and into new space in southeast Portland. We're moving for a couple of reasons. First, we had a good opportunity to buy and we took it. We're not getting any younger, and we figure you shouldn't pay rent unless you absolutely have to.
The larger reason has to do with the direction our business has taken. We've been working with Columbia Forest Products for the past several years. During that time, they have transformed from an old-school manufacturer to one of the leading lights in the sustainable building movement. The experience has transformed us, too.
We bought Pinch House so that we could experience and understand firsthand the challenges and rewards of sustainable building. Here in Portland, green projects are popping up everywhere, usually with hefty price tags attached. We wanted to see what you could do with—not to put too fine a point on it—plenty of enthusiasm and not much money.
Additional benefits: both Pinch principals live in southeast, and in fact Hillerns lives in the house next door. The fence between the properties can be removed, giving our children a double lot to play in. McIsaac can walk or bike to work.
Downsides? Well, there isn't much in terms of restaurants at the edge of Woodstock as yet, and we'll have a harder time making it down to our beloved Bouchon on Fridays. We're trying to get them to move east.