T
he Gus J. Solomon U.S. Courthouse at 620 S.W. Main St. in downtown Portland sold for $1.8 million this week. Real‑estate firm SKB closed the deal, as recorded in a Multnomah County deed. Built in the late 1920s, the 40,000‑sq‑ft building has served as a post office, military office, U.S. District Court and Court of Appeals. It was named after Judge Gus Solomon, who served the federal judiciary for 37 years.

    The federal government announced the sale in May, citing $76 million in potential capital costs to modernize the 90‑year‑old structure. All federal tenants had already moved out, and the sale includes a preservation covenant because the courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

    SKB president Todd Gooding said the firm has no concrete redevelopment plan yet but will relocate its headquarters to the former courthouse. “We wanted to keep ownership local,” he explained. “Given the low acquisition cost, we hope to work with city officials to spark a downtown renaissance.”

    CBRE brokered the transaction. The sale comes amid a broader slump in Portland’s office market, where downtown properties are selling at steep discounts and investor interest is low. A recent Urban Land Institute report ranked Portland at the bottom of U.S. cities for real‑estate investment prospects. CBRE data shows roughly one‑third of downtown office space is vacant, and brokers predict it will take years to fill those gaps.