Prosper Portland, the Portland Housing Bureau and their partners in the Broadway Corridor development have reached agreement on central elements that will advance the transformational project in northwest Portland.
On Wednesday, August 12, the Prosper Portland Board of Commissioners will consider three critical steps that will advance the development of the Broadway Corridor project in northwest Portland: the authorization of a Disposition and Development Agreement (DDA) with Continuum Partners, LLC, a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA) with the Healthy Communities Coalition (HCC); and recommendation of an investment strategy and City Council actions to facilitate the project development.
Mayor Ted Wheeler said, “We envision Broadway Corridor as Portland’s next great place to help us realize our vision for creating shared economic prosperity. These agreements lay the foundation for this new neighborhood and ensure this public/private partnership provides quality employment opportunities, prioritizes benefits for Black, Indigenous and all People of Color and aligns with our climate action objectives. I am deeply grateful to all our partners for their ongoing commitment to create a financially viable project that maximizes community benefits.”
Prosper Portland Executive Director Kimberly Branam said, “This week we will take a significant step toward a transformational development that advances shared economic prosperity in Portland. We look forward to working with Continuum Partners, Healthy Communities Coalition, the Portland Housing Bureau and many others to bring this new neighborhood to life. With strong partnerships and a shared vision of an equitable and prosperous future for our city, we are well positioned to deliver on the incredible promise of the U.S. Post Office site.”
“Our Coalition went into negotiations for community benefits knowing that economic development in Portland has created harmful economic, racial, social and environmental disparities in our city,” said Vivian Satterfield, Verde’s Director of Strategic Partnerships and the Healthy Community Coalition’s lead. “Because organizations representing our city’s growing majority of communities of color and working families were at the negotiating table explicitly stating our goal around stopping this old way of conducting urban redevelopment that benefits the elite few, we believe this agreement begins to deliver on the promise that all who will live, work and play in the Broadway Corridor will do so on a foundation of racial justice. We commit ourselves to building the movement that will ensure this is the case extending years into the future.”
Mark Falcone, CEO and founder of Continuum Partners, said, “We are excited to have reached this major milestone and come to agreement on the critical terms of the developer agreement and the community benefits. The community benefits aspect of the project was what originally drew us to get involved and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to deliver on the full breadth of the agreed-upon commitments.”
Portland Housing Bureau Director Shannon Callahan said, “With this action, we are one step closer to creating a vibrant neighborhood with opportunity for families at all incomes to live. I appreciate all of the partners, City bureaus and Prosper Portland for prioritizing the creation of a neighborhood that will provide equitable opportunity and be welcoming to all Portlanders.”
The Broadway Corridor CBA is a contract between Prosper Portland, Portland Housing Bureau, and HCC, a coalition of more than 20 organizations representing Portland’s communities of color; environmental and environmental justice communities; small businesses; transportation advocates; and organized workers in the construction, public, and property services sectors, with relevant terms incorporated into the DDA. Over the past year, the parties agreed to a significant level of community benefits and reached final tentative agreements on a CBA term sheet which covers: construction equity, operations equity, affordable housing, sustainability, business equity, tenanting, and oversight. The agreement will guarantee living wage jobs for workers and provide opportunities for women and minorities.
In 2016, Prosper Portland, in partnership with the Portland Housing Bureau, acquired the 13.5 acre U.S. Postal Service property at 715 NW Hoyt in the heart of the 32-acre Broadway Corridor, a once-in-a-generation opportunity for Prosper Portland and the City to meet growth requirements through the development of four million square feet of new economic, business, social and community development opportunities. Redevelopment of the site could house approximately 2,400 new households and 4,000 jobs, which represents approximately 10 percent of the growth projected to be added to the Central City by 2035, on a large, contiguous property in the middle of downtown and adjacent to one of Portland’s regional transit hubs.
In 2018, Prosper Portland Board selected Continuum Partners as the preferred developer partner for the property. Continuum has served as the developer advisor through the development planning process and has exclusive negotiation rights for the redevelopment of the portions of the site not owned by Portland Housing Bureau. |