Commercial Remodeling Contractor in Portland, Oregon
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Modern Northwest remodels and converts existing commercial buildings across Oregon and Southwest Washington: old retail boxes turned into new stores, care facilities turned into apartments, dealerships, churches, office lobbies and the stairs and structure that keep a building safe. Remodeling an existing building is a different job from building new. You find out what is behind the walls, keep tenants or customers running around the work, and bring old systems up to today's code without blowing the budget.
Commercial Remodels and Conversions We Have Built
- Ace Hardware, Washougal WA: a 23,000 square foot former Rite Aid converted into an Ace Hardware, October 2024 to March 2025, followed by a 5,800 square foot garden center outside the store.
- Cherry Park, Troutdale: an 80-unit adult care facility remodeled into affordable apartments, finished April 2025.
- Diplomat Motors, Troutdale: a car dealership remodel, summer 2024.
- Journey Church, Camas WA: a two-phase remodel of an existing church and event space, finished February 2025.
- A professional office center in Lake Oswego: three steel stair cases removed and replaced with concrete landings and treads, fall 2024.
- Elevate Towers, Hillsboro: lobby updates in two working office towers, 2025 to 2026.
What We Remodel
Retail Box Conversions
Taking a vacant big-box or chain store and turning it into a new brand: new layout, new electrical and lighting, restrooms, storefront and signage. The Ace Hardware in Washougal was a Rite Aid until we converted it.
Change of Use
A building built for one use becoming another, like a care facility becoming apartments or a blood bank becoming a dental office. The change of occupancy review sets the fire, accessibility and plumbing requirements, so we plan for it from the first walkthrough.
Showrooms and Dealerships
Customer-facing remodels where the building has to look right and keep working, like the Diplomat Motors dealership in Troutdale.
Churches and Event Spaces
Assembly spaces carry their own exit, fire and accessibility rules. Journey Church in Camas, a church and event space, was remodeled in two phases.
Lobbies and Common Areas
Lobbies, corridors and shared restrooms in buildings that stay in use, like the two office towers at Elevate in Hillsboro. The work gets scheduled around the tenants, not the other way around.
Structural and Safety Repairs
Stairs, landings, framing and the parts of an old building that have worn out. At a Lake Oswego office center we replaced three steel stair cases with concrete landings and treads.
What Drives the Cost of a Commercial Remodel
What is behind the walls. Old wiring, undersized plumbing, asbestos in older finishes and framing that does not match the drawings are the most common surprises. We open up and test early where we can, so the surprise shows up in the budget instead of halfway through the job.
Code upgrades triggered by the work. A remodel can trigger accessibility upgrades to restrooms, entries and parking, and a change of use can trigger fire and life-safety work the old building never had. We check what your scope triggers with Portland Permitting & Development or your city before the price is final.
Whether the building stays open. Phasing work around tenants, shoppers or a congregation takes more planning and some after-hours work, but it keeps your income coming in.
For tenant suites inside a building, see our tenant improvement cost guide for the published per-square-foot ranges.
Cherry Park, Troutdale
An 80-unit adult care facility remodeled into affordable apartments, November 2024 to April 2025. A change of use in an existing building, from care facility to homes.
See Our WorkBefore: the Rite Aid We Turned Into an Ace Hardware
See the finished Ace Hardware project
How a Commercial Remodel Runs
Walk and Open Up
We walk the building with you and, where we can, open ceilings and walls to see what is really there before the price is final.
Code Check and Design
We check what your scope triggers under the building code, then design with your architect or run it design-build.
Phasing Plan
If the building stays open, we split the work into phases and schedule the noisy and dusty parts around the people using it.
Permit and Build
We pull the permit with Portland Permitting & Development or your city, then build, with rough-in inspections before the walls close.
Turnover
Final inspections, punch list and closeout. In a phased job, each finished area is handed back as soon as it passes.
Commercial Remodeling Questions, Answered
What is the difference between a remodel and a tenant improvement?
A tenant improvement fits out one leased suite for a tenant. A commercial remodel works on the building itself: converting a whole store, a change of use, lobbies and common areas, exteriors or structure. We do both.
Can you remodel while the building stays open?
Usually, yes. We split the work into phases and schedule it around the people using the building. The Journey Church remodel in Camas was done in two phases.
Do you convert buildings to a new use?
Yes. We converted a 23,000 square foot Rite Aid into an Ace Hardware and an 80-unit adult care facility into apartments.
Will a remodel trigger code upgrades?
Often. Remodels can trigger accessibility upgrades, and a change of use can trigger fire and life-safety work. We check what your scope triggers before the price is final.
Do you remodel the outside of commercial buildings too?
Yes. Storefronts, entries, parking and site work are part of many remodels. After converting the Washougal Rite Aid into an Ace Hardware, we built the 5,800 square foot garden center outside it: steel fencing, concrete, asphalt, new curbs and canopy footings.
Where do you do commercial remodels?
Across the Portland metro and Southwest Washington. Recent remodels are in Washougal, Troutdale, Camas, Lake Oswego and Hillsboro.
Related Services
Serving the Portland metro, including Portland, OR, Beaverton, OR, and Vancouver, WA. See our full service areas in Oregon and Washington.
Remodeling or Converting a Building?
Tell us about the building and what it needs to become. We will walk it with you.
Request a Free Consultation