Clackamas Movers

Clackamas, More Than an Address

Clackamas by the Numbers

Clackamas is an unincorporated community of more than 20,000 residents in Clackamas County, Oregon, located southeast of Portland along the I-205 corridor. Clackamas County provides all government services. The community covers the area generally bounded by I-205 to the west, OR-212 and OR-224 to the north, the Sunnyside Road corridor to the east, and the Clackamas River valley to the south.

The Clackamas Town Center and its surrounding retail corridor serve the entire southeast metro area, drawing shoppers from Oregon City, Milwaukie, Happy Valley, and beyond. The medical facilities in the area make Clackamas a significant healthcare employment center as well.

The History of the Community

The name Clackamas comes from the Clackamas people, a Chinookan-speaking band who lived along the Clackamas River and in the lower Columbia River basin for centuries. The Clackamas River, which flows through the county into the Willamette just north of Oregon City, was central to their way of life and gave its name first to the county and then to the unincorporated community that grew up near the river.

Settlement of the area that became the community of Clackamas followed the Oregon Trail migration and the establishment of farms in the Clackamas River valley in the 1840s and 1850s. The community grew slowly through the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a farming and timber area south of Portland.

The postwar period transformed Clackamas along with most of suburban Clackamas County. The construction of I-205 in the late 1970s, which bypassed Portland to the east, fundamentally changed the community’s character by making it directly accessible from both the northern and southern metro areas. Clackamas Town Center opened in 1981, anchoring the commercial development that followed along the freeway corridors.

What a Clackamas Move Actually Involves

Clackamas moves center on a few consistent planning points.

The I-205 corridor through the community sees heavy commute traffic in both directions, and the Clackamas Town Center area adds retail traffic on evenings and weekends. For moves that require transit through or past the Town Center corridor, we time the routing to avoid the worst congestion windows.

The older residential neighborhoods in the community, built primarily between the 1960s and 1980s, have standard mid-century access. Ranch homes and tri-levels with side garages and finished basements are typical. Lots are generous by Portland standards, and parking for a moving truck is usually available directly in front of the property.

The apartment communities near the Town Center and along the 82nd Avenue corridor have multi-family requirements: advance scheduling with building management, elevator or stairwell coordination where applicable, and certificates of insurance. We handle all of it before moving day.

The newer subdivisions in the Happy Valley and Sunnyside Road areas adjacent to Clackamas are modern in construction and access. The main variables are inventory size and the distance between addresses.