Prosper Portland’s Economic Recovery Investments Funded by the American Rescue Plan

Portland City Council allocated Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to Prosper Portland in 2021 and 2022 to support these projects.

Learn more about the principles used to guide these investment priorities at portland.gov/united/rescueplan

Increased business district support through Venture Portland:

Funding supports new Major Impact Grants and increases Venture Portland’s staffing to serve Catalytic Investment Initiative (CII) districts, which include St. Johns, Williams, Foster, Lents, and Midway.

Venture Portland also launched an Events Hub to help business districts and organizations with large-scale events. Services include event planning, vendor and resource connections, social media and sponsorship recommendations. Venture Portland will also work with Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) for road closures, traffic control, etc.

Learn more

Capacity-building support for culturally specific business-serving organizations:

At the direction of Mayor Wheeler, Prosper Portland provided grant funding to help stabilize and strengthen the following community-serving organizations.

Downtown and Commercial Corridor Revitalization and Activation

Downtown and neighborhood commercial districts continue to struggle because of the pandemic. A team at Prosper Portland is working to revitalize and activate these areas in partnership with community and city bureau partners. Activations have included small business pop-ups and events to transform plazas and vacant storefronts.

Rapid Workforce Training & Employment Services

Prosper Portland is partnering with Worksystems to provide career training and work opportunities. These services are for Portlanders who are houseless, at risk of eviction or affected by increased violence or crime.

Career training programs are 12 weeks or less. Graduates who complete training are also connected to employment opportunities.

Learn more or apply for these programs.

Small Business Resource Navigation & Technical Assistance

The Portland Small Business Hub is a free resource navigation & technical assistance program that provides support for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic located in the city of Portland.

The Hub is a collaboration between Prosper Portland and local service providers and offers culturally specific small business technical assistance and resource navigation. The Hub connects business owners to financial relief programs by facilitating referrals to one-on-one assistance in applying for loans, grants, and other funding opportunities. Services are available in different languages.

Services for small businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic include:

  • Navigation to business resources
  • One-on-one support to complete grant or loan applications for relief programs
  • Cultural and industry-specific technical assistance
  • Technical assistance via language translation and interpretation services
Learn more

Small Business Stabilization Restore Grant

The Small Business Stabilization Restore Grant Program supports Portland small businesses experiencing hardships resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Prosper Portland provides these direct grants to help stabilize small businesses by addressing operational expenses for businesses within the city. The Restore Grant Program can provide up to $25,000 in reimbursements to eligible small businesses or nonprofits located along highly impacted districts and corridors for eligible expenses related to security, prevention, specific operational expenses, damages, and vandalism that occurred since January 2022. 

Learn more

Commercial Activations

Given ongoing pandemic impacts, Prosper Portland is committed to sustaining support of public and private property owners, small businesses, artists, and event producers with a focus on investing in Portland’s “main streets.” This funding will support the following initiatives: 

  • Develop an activation strategy that helps to determine ideal commercial corridors where activation has the largest impact for small businesses in the area 
  • Produce a consistent flow of activations, events, and art installations throughout the city to bolster commercial corridors 

Branding and Marketing

Prosper Portland contracted with North, an advertising agency, to develop the Every Wednesday event promotions and awareness campaign. Due to the ongoing impact of COVID-19, retailers, restaurants, and clubs located in the Central City continue to struggle.  Prior to the pandemic, most of these businesses enjoyed regular support provided by downtown workers and visitors. The event promotion and awareness campaigns have been closely coordinated with an array of public, private, and non-profit partners with the overall goal of inviting residents, visitors, employees, and employers to actively support the local businesses that are directly linked to the vibrancy of the Central City. 

 

 

Learn more about our pandemic recovery programs and resources:

Prosper Portland and the City of Portland are committed to equity and meaningful access, and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin (including limited English proficiency), disability, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, source of income, or familial status in accordance with local, state, and federal laws. To request translation, interpretation, accommodations, modifications, or other auxiliary aids or services, or to file a complaint of discrimination, contact 311 (503-823-4000), for Relay Service & TTY: 711.