Affordable Commercial Tenanting Program

Contact: ACT@prosperportland.us

Prosper Portland has created the Affordable Commercial Tenanting Program to address a recent dramatic increase in retail rents and decrease in vacancy rates in the city of Portland, which have resulted in the displacement of small businesses from Portland’s urban neighborhoods. The program seeks to:

  • reduce barriers to entry for underrepresented businesses
  • preserve the vitality of small businesses
  • provide business development opportunities that in turn offer needed goods and services to the community
  • advance our goal to build an equitable economy

In addition, in June 2018, changes to Portland City Code allowed Prosper Portland to add the Affordable Commercial Space Bonus Program to its existing affordable tenanting initiative. The Bonus Program allows mixed-use development projects to access a floor area ratio (FAR) and height bonus to add additional space to residential, commercial office or hotel projects within approved Commercial/Mixed-Use zones. Proposed projects that include a housing component must include 20 or fewer new residential units. Priority tenants for the affordable space are local businesses owned by women and/or people of color; local businesses primarily owned by individuals who are members of historically underserved populations; and non-profit organizations which serve historically underserved communities, including communities of color.

Priority Businesses

Priority businesses are those led by owners who are diverse in terms of race, gender and other demographics typically underrepresented in the business community, and who provide needed business services to the local community. Prosper Portland will evaluate tenants based on their alignment with these priorities.

Locations

The Affordable Commercial Tenanting Program is available at two sites in Lents Town Center in SE Portland, Alberta Commons in NE Portland, 10Y in downtown Portland, and Halsey 106 in Gateway, offering access and assistance to qualified businesses in the form of an equitable application process, access to space, and in some cases additional incentives designed to lower the barriers to entry for emerging and small businesses, such as reduced rent, tenant improvement contributions and technical assistance.

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The Stash Tea Building Leasing Opportunities

Prosper Portland offers the Affordable Commercial Tenanting Program at the Stash Tea Building, a full block of commercial space in the prime West End area of downtown Portland at SW 10th Avenue and SW Yamhill Street. The revitalized building offers a variety of spaces to create a cohesive and complementary mix of tenants.