Milwaukie’s most famous bright red building might be trading bags of flour for backpacks. Clackamas Web Academy, the public K‑12 charter sponsored by the North Clackamas School District, has emerged as the prospective buyer for Bob’s Red Mill’s former Whole Grain Store & Café at 5000 S.E. International Way and is proposing to convert the landmark into a permanent school. The retail store and café closed in February 2025, although Bob’s Red Mill’s manufacturing facilities nearby are still humming along. The plan would repurpose the roughly 20,000‑square‑foot building for classrooms and community use while keeping the site’s familiar exterior look.
The property covers about 1.96 acres and includes roughly 20,889 square feet of space, along with a commercial‑grade kitchen, solar panels and an 85‑space parking lot, according to the commercial listing from Kidder Mathews. The site was listed at $5.95 million last year. Bob’s Red Mill announced the retail and café closures in February 2025 as it refocused on manufacturing and wholesale distribution, per KPTV/FOX 12.
Charter School Makes Its Move
Clackamas Web Academy says it has been under contract for about 120 days while it works through due diligence and community outreach, according to a school newsletter. The charter has submitted a temporary land‑use application seeking community‑service approval so it can operate a nonprofit public school at the site, and the academy says it has met with the mayor and neighborhood groups as part of that process. Local reporting details plans to convert the building into nine classrooms, office and meeting space and a gym, while keeping some after‑hours access for clubs and youth sports, according to The Oregonian/OregonLive.
Zoning Questions On Industrial Turf
The site is zoned Business Industrial, so the proposed school must secure a Type III land‑use approval. City staff initially deemed the application incomplete in February because it lacked a required Transportation Impact Study, according to a City of Milwaukie memo. Planning staff have also raised concerns about preserving industrial land in the city as more non‑industrial uses pursue conversions. The city's review includes public notice, staff reports and a planning commission hearing where neighbors will be able to weigh in.
Traffic, Taxes And Tradeoffs
Updated materials filed with the application include a traffic study that the school says would produce a significant net reduction in total weekday vehicle trips compared with the site’s former retail use, and a public hearing is scheduled before the Milwaukie Planning Commission on May 12, 2026, according to The Oregonian/OregonLive. That coverage also notes that if the academy purchases the property and operates it as a public school, the parcel would be removed from the tax rolls, a point already shaping debate over the conversion. The application packet and reporting show the school enrolls about 550 students overall, with roughly 160 attending onsite each week, figures the academy says drive its traffic and parking calculations.
What Happens Next
The planning commission hearing will be the next formal step. Staff reports and public testimony will help shape any conditions the city attaches if it approves the change of use, according to city materials. If the commission signs off on the application, the academy would still need to complete the purchase, obtain building permits for any interior alterations and meet any conditions related to traffic, parking or community access. Residents can track the commission agenda and staff report in the weeks before the May meeting to review the full application packet and recommendations.
Legal And Tax Fine Print
Because Clackamas Web Academy is a public charter school, ownership would likely change the property’s tax status and reduce tax revenues tied to that parcel, an outcome already flagged in coverage of the proposal and the application packet. At the same time, planning staff say preserving industrial land remains a policy priority that the council and commission will weigh when deciding whether to allow a community‑service use in the Business Industrial zone.
