Cheap rents and dilapidated houses have long attracted a transient population that caused many to avoid the neighborhood. That's changing now that 20-something artists and young entrepreneurs have begun investing in a mix of eco-friendly new businesses.
"The district has had different reputations," said Mic Hines, owner of the Eugene Whiteaker International Hostels.
"Fifteen years ago, it was an anarchist hot spot. It's sort of evolved from there," mostly shedding a reputation for drugs and alcohol, and attracting "a lot of artists and people coming to settle in Oregon and looking for a nice, informal place to be."
Spread out around an area north and south of the railroad tracks a few blocks from the Willamette River, the neighborhood has a distinctive core business area that stretches along Blair Boulevard and surrounding streets, roughly between Third and Seventh avenues.
A longtime local landmark is the onion dome atop St. John the Wonderworker Serbian Orthodox Church at 304 Blair Blvd.
"We've got houses that are kept up pretty well, and some that seem like they're not that well-groomed," said Hines, "but they're still filled with interesting people."
Best time to visit is the last Friday of the month, when 25 venues open from 6-9 p.m. for the self-guided art walk.
A few don't-miss stops:
_ Ninkasi Brewing Co., 272 Van Buren St., a local brewery and tasting room in an old plumbing-company building with a large outdoor courtyard that draws a lively after-work crowd.
Best times to visit are toward the end of the week when mobile food vendors show up, offering wood-fired pizzas and tofu chili to wash down the $4 pints on tap. Local bands provide music. Kids welcome until 8 p.m. www.ninkasi
brewing.com.
