Taft Home Hotel

McMenamins is restoring the 1906 Taft Home, a former hotel-turned-senior-housing building in downtown Portland's West End, into a 63-room hotel connected by a private skybridge to its neighboring Crystal Ballroom. The building operated as low-income senior housing from 1984 until 2021, when state safety citations closed it; McMenamins bought it for $1.5 million in 2024 and is targeting a September 2028 opening.

The place

1321 SW Washington Street, in Portland's West End, immediately adjacent to McMenamins' existing Crystal Hotel and Crystal Ballroom — the hotel will connect to the Ballroom via a planned private skybridge.

The concept

Built in 1906 to a design by Edgar M. Lazarus, the building operated as a hotel — later known as the Ramapo, then renamed the Taft Hotel — before an unconfirmed later date when it shifted to residential use; from 1984 to 2021 it served as supportive housing for low-income seniors and people with disabilities under REACH, closing after state citations for safety and care violations displaced more than 70 residents. It then sat vacant until McMenamins bought it for $1.5 million in June 2024. The restoration preserves original clawfoot tubs and Chicago School-style three-part windows, and adds new murals themed on songs by Patti Smith, Modest Mouse and the Grateful Dead.

Dining & wellness

Cassidy's Restaurant and Bar and Scooter's, both existing ground-floor tenants, are staying on through the renovation, alongside a planned gift shop and small performance stage. The private skybridge to the neighboring Crystal Ballroom is meant to give hotel guests direct, informal access to shows there.