Northeast Neighbors

Northeast Neighbors sprang into action during the 1870s when a rail line connecting Salem to Portland opened a massive stretch of prairie on the outskirts of town to new development. The churches, houses, and schools its original residents built in the seven decades after this moment continue to serve this central Salem neighborhood and have helped transform it into a thriving community just outside downtown. "It's a fairly desirable place to live," says Melina Tomson, owner and principal broker at Tomson Burnham, LLC.

Between 1870 and 1940, the neighborhood's original residents built four churches, three schools, and an Oregon Cherry Growers packaging plant that revolutionized how maraschino cherries are processed in the late 1920s. They also built new facilities for the Oregon State Penitentiary and the Oregon State Hospital – both of which moved to Salem from Portland – that occupy a 194-acre complex just outside the neighborhood's eastern boundary.

Amid all of this construction, the city's earliest residential developers laid out a gridded street pattern full of lots varying in size from 4,700 square feet to 8,000 square feet, where they built hundreds of houses following that era's most popular styles. These include Craftsman houses that feature a large front porch and touches inspired by the arts and crafts movement, Tudor Revival houses with sharp roof angles and windows, and English cottages with roofs that take a sharp bend at the end. Ranch-style and minimal traditional houses filled the neighborhood's few vacant lots immediately after World War II, and today these houses fetch $250,000 to $400,000 depending on their condition. "Most of these houses have already been updated," Tomson says. "Flippers were very active here because they saw great returns on their investments."

Sidewalks are everywhere in this neighborhood, which is what you'd expect from an older community just outside downtown, as are Douglas fir and maple trees that tower overhead and add even more greenery to the bushes and trees residents have planted in their yards. Garages, though, are far less common in the neighborhood. Most of its residents must park on the street or behind their houses if they're fortunate enough to have lots accessible from an alley.

Traffic flows through Northeast neighbors along three main thoroughfares running east to west. These include Market Street, which cuts through the neighborhood's center on its way from Interstate 5 to downtown Salem, Center Street and State Street. These last two routes cut through the neighborhood's southern half as they bring traffic from the north and south sides of the state penitentiary complex to the north and south sides of the State Capitol Building, which is just 1½ miles from the center of the neighborhood. Each of these streets has a commercial strip where you'll find restaurants and coffee shops like Joe Mocha Bistro on Market Street, which fills the area with the smell of coffee beans as they spin around its Diedrich Roaster, Patty's Off-Center Café on Center Street, where pancakes and BLT's are among the most popular items on the menu, as well as the Word of Mouth Bistro and Sybil's Omelets on State Street, where you can grab a quick brunch daily between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Children who live in Northeast Neighbors will attend Englewood Elementary School, which was built in 1911; Parrish Middle School, which was built in 1923; and North Salem High School, which was built in 1937. These three schools are part of the Salem-Keizer School District, which received an overall B- on Niche.com. After class, these children can spin around the old school merry-go-round at McRae Park, cool off at Englewood Park's splash pad, or run the bases at Barrick Field when it's not being used for one of North Salem High's baseball games.

Northeast Neighbors' original residents laid a strong foundation when they spun this central Salem neighborhood into action 150 years ago. And because of their efforts, it continues to be a great place to call home.

Written By

Mac Mclean

Photography Contributed By

Tim Acock

Video By

Luke Mancari