About Sunrise Rockwood
We are a real estate development firm rooted in Gresham, Oregon, building quality housing that strengthens the Rockwood community.
Our Story
We founded Sunrise Rockwood on a simple principle: great development starts with great communities.
We believe that real estate development carries a responsibility beyond financial returns. Every project we undertake is an opportunity to improve the built environment, create spaces where families thrive, and deliver durable investments that benefit all stakeholders.
Based in the Portland metropolitan area, we focus on the Rockwood neighborhood and greater East Portland — areas with strong transit access, growing demand for quality housing, and communities that deserve thoughtful development. Our first completed project, 459 Rock Apartments, and our ongoing Sunrise East reflect this commitment.
Strategy
Long-Term Value
We take a phased approach to development, building on proven success. Our Sunrise Multifamily project demonstrates this — 459 Rock complete, Sunrise East in progress, 123 total units planned.
Our Values
Community First
Every project begins with understanding the community it will serve. We build relationships before we break ground.
Enduring Quality
We develop properties built to last, with materials and designs that appreciate over time rather than depreciate.
Thoughtful Growth
We pursue opportunities that create genuine value, balancing ambitious vision with disciplined execution.
Transparent Partnership
We believe the best outcomes come from honest collaboration with investors, partners, and the communities we serve.
Leadership Team
Ed Heissler
Founder and President
Ed Heissler is an experienced real estate developer and community leader with a long-standing focus on projects that strengthen housing, education, and local infrastructure. He holds a BA in Business Administration and began his career with a Fortune 100 company before returning to his family's roots in commercial construction and real estate development.
Since the late 1990s, Ed has led and supported a wide range of private and community-focused development initiatives. His civic leadership includes helping develop the nation's largest fully community funded family shelter with My Father's House, expanding housing for women and children through the Stepping Stones project, and guiding the launch of the Oregon Public House—the first nonprofit brew pub, with all profits reinvested into local nonprofit organizations.
Ed also brings international experience through his involvement in orphanage development in Honduras, microcredit programs in Niagara, and community projects in Mexico. In 2013, he founded Sunrise Development, LLC, leading the largest community revitalization effort in Rockwood (Gresham, Oregon) in over two decades, a multi use project designed to create jobs and deliver long term community assets.
Matt Brown
Architect
Matt Brown is a founding principal of YBA Architects with over 25 years of experience designing award-winning buildings and urban developments across a wide range of scales and contexts. His expertise in urbanism, efficient spatial design, and mixed-use development in both urban and suburban settings makes him a natural fit for the kind of community-focused work Sunrise Rockwood pursues.
Matt has led design and delivery of several significant mixed-use projects, bringing an ability to contribute from high-level strategic visioning and planning through detailed design, documentation, and delivery. Prior to founding YBA in 2014, he spent five years as a design architect and urban designer at internationally acclaimed Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios in London. He is a registered architect in Oregon, Washington, Arizona, and the UK, and is an active member of ULI, serving on the Suburban Product Council for the Northwest chapter.
Want to work with us?
Whether you're interested in partnering, investing, or learning more about what we do, we'd love to hear from you.
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