The WaterShed is being converted from leased spaces to owned spaces. To learn more about becoming a WaterShed owner, contact our real estate office.
Article: Living in the WaterShed
Editor’s Note: When we began the WaterShed project, the idea of building green and looking at it with a longer-term investment philosophy received their share of ridicule. At the time, commitment to green building was considered by some to be a passing fad. We’re proud to have been ahead of the curve; it was worth taking the teasing.
Wanted: Apartment tenants willing to live extra environmentally conscious, who can pay three to four times the typical rent and who don't mind defrosting a back-to-the-future refrigerator by hand.
That's the score at Jeff and Victoria Wilson-Charles' new three-story stainless steel and stucco project now ready for rent - at upward of $2,000 per month - on the south bank of the Willamette River near the Ferry Street Bridge.
Article: Creature Comforts, On the House
Watershed: A critical point that marks a division or a change of course; a turning point. That is one definition of the word "watershed." Fittingly, Jeff and Victoria Wilson-Charles named their residential and commercial development in downtown Eugene the WaterShed building-and one turning point they hope the structure represents is toward greener, cleaner ways of designing, building and operating homes.
The recently completed building, at the corner of Third Avenue and Mill Street just south of Ferry Street Bridge, is perhaps the city's high-profile showcase of green materials and technologies melded together in a multi-family residential setting.
Extending the Ethic and Aesthetic to Outdoors
Editor’s Note: We rely on Mosaic Gardens’ for design, construction and maintenance of the outdoors spaces at the WaterShed and our other projects. From the get-go, livable, sustainable outdoor spaces were an important part of the WaterShed. Read more about the landscape design and maintenance, from its award-winning landscape design group’s blog.
New Standards Are In Store for New Construction Say Eugene Planning Staff
Editor’s Note: We’re posting this article from the Register-Guard’s June 13, 2006 issue to demonstrate that building green takes a community – and it relies on flexibility from the City.
The city of Eugene is poised to adopt a green building standard for all city buildings larger than 10,000 square feet. The City Council will take up the issue on July 10 and, based on previous discussions, the standards are a shoo-in.
If anything, councilors will push for an even stricter set of requirements for energy efficiency, nontoxic building materials and waste-limiting processes, said Mike Penwell, Eugene design and construction manager.
The standards were established by the U.S. Green Building Council and they range from a flat certification, up to silver, then gold and platinum.
A New Developer Envisions an Enlightened Community - and Rainwater Toilets
Editor’s Note: We’re posting this news from way-back because although it pokes a bit of fun at our vision, we seem to have accomplished our goals. (And no, no one has tried the toilet water.) This originally ran in the Register-Guard’s Real Estate Notebook on June 13, 2006.
Jeff Wilson-Charles is pioneering a green colony on the high- profile south bank of the Willamette River, next to the Ferry Street Bridge.
He's breaking ground this week on a $2.6 million, five- apartment, two-shop complex on a tiny, 7,000-square-foot lot.
But this is only the start of a village of stores and residences he's got planned for this and surrounding blocks, including the ground where Peabody's Pub and the Eugene Moving and Storage building now stand.
Welcome New Neighbor: Akira Omikase
WaterShed residents and visitors, prepare to feast: Our newest neighboring restaurant, Akira Omikase, has opened in the newly renovated and expansively extended Bungalow to the south of our building. The restaurant’s previous iteration, the beloved Mame, left a culinary hole in Eugene’s restaurant scene, and Chef Taro Kobayashi has collaborated with the owners of the WaterShed building and the Bungalow to bring a new, chef’s choice Japanese offering to the community. Learn more about Akira Omikase in person at 359 Mill Street. Parking is primarily on the street, though there is some in the parking lot. Please respect the “Reserved for Resident” signs that demarcate the WaterShed resident spots!
Here are just the first Yelp reviews. Read more here:
“Was surprised with a date night here a few weeks ago and loved the new location and vibe! Taro has never let us down! He has elevated his dining experience from what he was able to achieve in the space formerly known as Mame, and I think he and his staff have a real winner with Akira. I won't be surprised when I see this location on the next food network special or Netflix food show. Cult favorite and can't miss if you're traveling through, or a local!”
“One word: GEM. This place is as good as it gets. Sushi at its finest. The menu is simple: choose a tasting menu of omnivore, pescatarian, or vegetarian along with what amount of money you want to spend (how many courses)... or get the chef’s choice of sushi.”
”I got the pescatarian menu and LOVED it. The dishes are unique and flavorful. There is truly something wonderful going on at the restaurant. You NEED to experience it!”“Love the atmosphere and cocktails. Some of the best food we have had in Eugene. Definitely a one-of-a-kind experience. We loved everything!!!!”
Amanda Marie's Dutch Girl: Swimming? Jumping?
Since she appeared on our wall in the summer of 2015, we have regularly received questions about the little Dutch girl who was captured in mid-float on the upper portion of the wall that’s most visible from Ferry Street Bridge. “Is she jumping?” “Maybe she’s swimming?” “Are those sparkles around her, or bubbles?”
Part of the joy we find in the mural is that there is no correct answer to the questions. We asked them of the artist herself, and even she didn’t know. (If you simply must have an answer, we personally suspect that our Dutch girl is closer to flying than jumping. There’s something dream-like about her, and if you spend some time considering her, she exudes joy or at least, contentment.)
As for the story behind the story, the mural on the bridge-facing wall came about in partnership with the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. You may have noticed that we have a fondness for murals — another of our buildings features an Italian street scene and another celebrates TrackTown USA. So when JSMA had a muralist, and we wanted a mural, we came to an agreement. One of them was that visiting artist Amanda Marie could choose her subject and content. It was a delightful way for us to put what was otherwise a large blank wall to use. (We minimized the use of windows on that side of the building in order to limit road noise for our apartments.)
Learn more about the artist and the project here. And of course, this town is now full of stunning murals. Check them out here.
