"We're talking about lives here, not just a policy... It's almost saying that gun that killed you is gonna be the same gun that resurrects you. Well, guns don't resurrect people, do they? But you keep shooting us."
On December 16th, Portland City Council will consider an amendment to expand the Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area, or ICURA. The district covers the area around I-5 in North and Northeast Portland in Portland’s historically Black neighborhood, Albina.
Inside the district, the city development commission known as Prosper Portland, offers incentives to new developments in the area with the goal of renewing and revitalizing the community. Historically, though, urban renewal has not meant the revitalization and advancement of existing communities and neighborhoods. Instead, it’s meant removal through gentrification. Part of the proposed expansion would include vacant property near Legacy Emanuel Hospital, at the cross streets of Russell and Williams. This is of particular importance to the group, Emanuel Displaced Persons Association 2. EDPA2 wrote a letter to city commissioners this week opposing the expansion of the urban renewal area and pushing city leaders to vote it down.
KBOO's Althea Billings spoke with Byrd from EDPA2 and Quinton Blanton from the N/NE Community Development Initiative Program Advisory Committee to learn more about the consequences of the expansion.
In 1971, the first Emanuel Displaced Persons Association signed an agreement with the City, the Portland Development Commission, now known as Prosper Portland, and Emanuel Hospital. It was called Resolution 1330, and was backed by a Federal Restitution Agreement. It promised a one to one replacement of the homes that were destroyed by the Emanuel Hospital expansion project. The expansion included the property at the intersection of Russell and Williams. That property has sat vacant for around 50 years. Now, the City wants to reincorporate it into the Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area.
Incorporating it back into the urban renewal area means that the city can profit through tax increment financing, or TIF. Tax increment financing is used in many cities to fund localized projects that don’t have other financial backing. In areas of urban renewal, the county assessor will freeze a property’s assessed value for a given time. Any tax collected above that value goes into a separate fund that can be used to pay for developments directly, or create bonds for private developers. When the development is finished, the idea is that the tax rate and the value of the development will be greater, and will raise the tax base of the whole area. For the Russell and Williams property, the city expects to gain $67 million by increasing the maximum indebtedness of the whole area, according to the notice of public hearing. 70 percent of the funds go directly to the Portland Housing Authority, and 19 percent go to Prosper Portland.
EDPA2 is hosting a virtual event on Thursday, December 10th at 7 p.m. entitled “The City & Prosper Portland Get Paid. The Black Community Gets PLAYED!”
- KBOO