M arch 2 4 , 1993 • T he P ortland O bserver
P age B ô
S ta te w id e Fair H o u sin g C o n fe re n c e
H eld A t C o n v e n tio n C e n te r
The ninth annual Oregon Fair
Housing Conference will be held in
Portland at the Convention Center on
Friday, April 2, 1993 from 8:00am to
5:30pm. The conference, which marks
the twenty-fifth anniversary of the
passage of Title VIII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1968, is expected to
draw more tlian 400 participants from
Oregon and southern Washington
The annual fair housing conference is
one of the largest gatherings devoted
to civil rights in housing in the county
Representatives expected to attend
include urban and rural housing ad­
vocates, government officials, hous­
ing providers, real estate profession­
als and members of the financial com­
munity.
Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act
of 1968 bans discrimination in the
sale, rental, finance, advertising, and
the brokerage of housing based on
race, religion, color, sex, and national
origin. T he 1988 Fair Housing
Amendments Act added non-discrimi­
nation protection for families with
children and people with disabilities.
The law also strengthens enforcement
procedures for fair housing com­
plaints, as well as imposes substantial
fines for those engaged in discrimina­
tory housing practices.
The event 's key speakers include
Hazel Lew is, a member of the Na­
tional Association of Realtors, a real
estate broker and expert in equal op­
portunity in housing from Arlington,
Texas; Stephen Dane, a nationally-
recognized litigator and expert on
mortgage lending discrimination is­
sues; Judith Chancy , Vice President
and Community Investment Officer
for the Federal Home Loan Bank of
Seattle; Congresswoman Elizabeth
Furse, member of the U S. House of
Representatives who represents the
first district of Oregon; Judge Michael
Marcus, a district court judge for
Multnomah County and advocate of
housing civil rights, and Rey Ramsey ,
the Director of Oregon’s Housing and
Community Services Department.
The conference will also feature
panel discussions and workshops con­
ducted by professionals in the hous­
ing and banking industries, public
sector and non-profit agencies. Work­
shop topics include affordable rural
housing; fairness in real estate, lend­
ing, appraisal and insurance prac­
tices; cultural diversity issues; and
discussions of legal issues in advertis­
ing, accessibility, senior housing, and
federal, state and local housing laws.
Sponsors of the conference in­
clude the U S . Department of Housing
and Urban Development (HUD), the
Portland Community Housing Re­
source Board, Multnomah County
Community Development Program,
the State of Oregon Housing and Com­
munity services Department, d a rk
County Department of Community
Services, the cities of Vancouver and
Portland, N ational A ssociation of
Housing and Redev elopment Officials,
Oregon Association of Realtors, O r­
egon League of Financial Institutions
and numerous Portland area banks.
For more information about the
conference or registration, contact
Carlsie Sprague at (503) 248-3617 or
Janet Hawkins at (503)248-3707
Housing Receivership Program
Applied To Substandard Property
City C om m issioner G retchen
Kafoury announced today that for the
first time, the City of Portland has
used its authority to have a receiver
appointed to rehabilitate deteriorated
housing. The Housing Authority of
Portland (HAP) was appointed this
week as receiver for a vacant and
deteriorated houseat 5933 NE Everett
Street. The appointment was made by-
M ultnomah County Circuit Court
Judge Stephen B. Herrell, at the re­
quest of the city.
Kafoury-, who oversees the Bu­
reau of Buildings, wants to put prop­
erty owners on notice that the Bureau
will be very aggressive in requiring
repairs to substandard housing. “Va­
cant and deteriorated housing is a
major obstacle to neighborhood rein­
vestment. We will insist that owners
maintain their properties. If fines and
penalties are not effective, we will use
the receivership program to bring
housing up to code. This is a tool that
works.”
The house has been vacant for
more than eight years. Repeated en­
forcement efforts by the B ureau’s
Neighborhood Inspections Tearn have
not persuaded the owner to make
needed repairs. For the past three years,
the Bureau has billed the owner $100
every three months as a derelict build­
ing inspection fee. City liens on the
property now amount to more than
$5000. There have been reports that
the house has been broken into and
used by transients, and it has been
cited by the City for trash, abandoned
vehicles and other nuisances.
The Housing authority will per­
form all needed repairs on the house,
and manage it as a rental. Rents will
be applied to the cost of repairs. HAP
will continue as receiver until the
owner pays all costs and shows the
court that the property will be man­
aged in conformance with City Codes.
The City’s authority to seek ap­
pointment of a receiver derives from
the Oregon Housing Receivership Act
(ORS 105.420 to 105.455). this law
was adopted by the 1989 session of the
Oregon Legislature, at the request of
the City of Portland. The Receiver­
ship Act was one of the recommenda­
tions of the City’s Vacant and Aban­
doned Building Task Force in their
report to the City Council in Decem­
ber 1988. The City’s Derelict Build­
ing Program also grew out of that
report.
According to David Sweet, in­
spections Supervisor for the Bureau of
Buildings, the City has started the
receivership process more than twenty
times in the last three years. Owners
have usually responded by making all
necessary repairs, or by selling prop­
erties to someone who made the re­
pairs. This is the first receivership
case that has come to court in Oregon.
Programs similar to this are in use in
some eastern cities, including New
York, Chicago and Hartford, Con­
necticut. This is the first time such an
approach has been used in the West.
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Eight Reclaimed Portland Homes
Available For Ownership At PDC’S
Homestead Open House
Eight homes in Portland neigh­
borhoods will be offered to low-in­
come residents at the upcoming Port­
land Homestead Open House on Sun­
day, March 28, 1993, from 1:00 to
4:00pm. The Portland Development
Commission administers the Port­
land Homestead Program, which pro­
vides home ownership opportunities
to those who otherwise might not be
able to afford their own home. The
program provides a significant tool
to help the City reclaim vacant and
abandoned housing, while encour­
aging neighborhood preservation, re­
vitalization and stability.
Through the Portland Home­
stead Program. PDC acquires vacant
homesin need of repair andtransfers
them to qualified Homesteaders. In
turn, Homesteaders agree to make
necessary repairs before moving in,
acceptt a low-interest PDC home
repair loan and live in the house for
at least three years. There is no dow n
payment involved in becoming a
Homesteader. Homesteaders pay a
one-time charge for taxes and insur­
ance of $500 Monthly payments on
the home repair and acquisition loans
average $375, including taxes and
insurance.
Each of the homes to be offered
March 28 will be open between 1 00
and 4:00pm. Potential homesteaders
must visit each home in which they
are interested to be considered for
ownership. PDC will hold a random
drawing for each home and will notify
, Vex/ reee/c /vo/c
those whose names are selected. PDC
advisors will be at each home to an­
swer questions duri ng the open house.
jM ite //u f a /i
The addressees of the homes being
offered are:
jV e lija '£ /« frei
• 6117 N. Grecly Ave., 2 bedrooms
• 8318 N. Peninsular Ave., 2 bed­
rooms
• 64 NE Buffalo St., 2 bedrooms
$ //a /e t/fin a /ib /
• 9120 N. Bayard Ave.. 3 bedrooms
'
.r /m e ir e a
• 7827 N. Omaha Ave., 2 bedrooms
• 584 N Blandcna St 2 bedrooms
/fle -k J e e n
• 10001 N. Willamette Blvd., 2 bed­
rooms
Q/i-ni&ioti
Individuals interested in being
added to the mailing list for Home­
stead Program offerings should call
PDC’s Neighborhood Housing Pres­
ervation Office at 823-3422 between
8 :00am and 5:00pm, Monday through
Friday.
The Portland Development Com­
mission is the City’s agency for urban Portland First Nazarene Presents
renewal, housing and economic de­ "The Coming" 1993 Easter Musical
velopment.
Drama April 4th, 8th, & 9th. The
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Easter Bonnet Parade
Contest
Enter Our Two Dollar Easter Bon­
net Parade Contest. Submit a pic­
ture of your favorite Easter Bonnet.
Deadline entry is Monday, April
12th. Your bonnet will bejudged by
votes from the Observer Staff, your
twodollar entry fee will be added to
the prize pot. You may opt for the
cash or an evening at one of our
finest restaurants here in Portland.
Send or bring your bonnet photo:
4747 NE M.L.K. For more infor­
mation call:288-0020.
5 0 3 -2 0 5 3 6 2 5
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QWN YOUR HOME
We’ll Show You How
Whether you're just dreaming of
owning a home or you're ready to
buy. First Interstate Bank would like
to show you how.
Because at First Interstate, we re
commined to revitalizing our neighbor­
hoods through home ownership. And,
through our Community Lending
Center, we place a special emphasis
on first-time home buyers.
The Community Lending Center
offers potential homeowners a step-
by-step approach to buying a home.
We ll help you put together a plan to
realize your dream of home owner­
ship. We ll focus on finding the loan
that best meets your needs and then
assist you throughout the home
o
loan process. And we ll provide
information and support after your
home loan closes.
We also sponsor community
seminars on home ownership.
And if you already own a home
we can help, too. We ll show you
how to use the equity you've built up
in your investment to make home
improvements or repairs.
So when it comes to any aspect of
buying, owning or maintaining a
home, call First Interstate. We re
here to show you how.
Community Lending Center
5’ 3O NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd
Portland, Oregon 97211
Phone: 225-3751
First interstate Bank
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