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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 18, 1998)
Z • ar3 /* * • C F ’ « '? ’ ’. • > < • \ l ’ *»<;-A». • ¿5; tÿjfec ■* Page A7 (Tljc JJort Lattò (Observer MARCH 18, 1998 (Elje Fortiani» (Db sem er .¿„s ■ iœ* p Shared Appreciation Mortgages To Qualifying Families he Portland D evelop tion; and Durham Construction. ment Com m ission, in Q ualifications to be met in p artn ersh ip w ith the applying for a Shared A ppre Portland Housing Center, is c ia now tio n M o rtg a g e in c lu d e : offering qualifying fam ilies an Fam ilies must have assets o f other financing tool for purchas less than $20,000 (excluding ing a home. item s such as autom obiles, re Shared A ppreciation M ort tirem ent accounts, etc.); must gage, the new tool allow s fam i not have owned a home within lies earning up to 80% o f m e the past three years; must o b dian family incom e to borrow tain the m aximum allow able up to $30,000 toward a first permanent financing from a pri time home purchase. vate financial institution; and T h e p ro g ra m is o ff e re d the sales price o f the hom e may through the Portland Housing not exceed the appraised value, C enter on home built or reha including all m arketing costs. b ilitated by five developers. T he program is fin an ced They include: Northeast C om through Federal HOME funds. m unity Developm ent C orpora Q u alify in g fam ilies in te r tion (N E C D C ); K nott Street ested in the program should Townhom es, L & W D evelop contact the Portland Housing ment, LLC ’ Franciscan E nter C enter at 282-7744 for an ap prise of Oregon; Hacienda Com plication or for m ore inform a m unity D evelopm ent C orpora- tion about the program . T PDC names New Development Director Abraham K. Farkas will join the Portland Development Commission (PDC)astheagency’snew Develop ment Director, he will begin his new position at PDC on April 13. Farkas will oversee a staff o f ap proximately 15 and will report di rectly to PDC Executive Director, Felicia Trader. The Development Department oversees urban renewal activities such as the development of theEastbank Riverfront Park, neigh borhood revitalization in target areas such as North/Northeast, and long range planning for areas such as the River District. Farkas come to PDC from the City of Eugene where he has served as Executive Director of Planning and Development for the past 13 years. In this capacity, Farkas managed that city’s growth policies, building per mit processes, economic develop ment strategies, and affordable hous ing strategies. “Abe Farkas comes to us with that rare combination o f skills that makes him successful at the neighborhood _ Abraham K. Farkas level, yet he understands the busi ness community as well,” said Mayor Vera Katz. “He’s shown he can ------ mobilize both to tackle the tough challenges communities face,” Katz added. ------------- Prior to joining the City o f Eu gene, Farkas served as Economic Development Manager for the De partment of Community Develop ment in Seattle. He also directed community Development and Plan ning for the City o f Fort Wayne, Indiana. Farkas also has an extensive aca demic background having served as Assistant Professor in Housing and Public Policy at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. He holds a doctorate in American Studies from the University o f Minnesota, a master’s in American Studies from Purdue University and a bachelor’s in Political Science also from Purdue. “ We are extrem ely please to welcom e Abe Farkas to PDC," said PD C ’s Felicia Trader. “The agency is at an im portant ju n c ture as we lay plans for the de velopm ent o f the River District and North Macadam areas. Abe will provide the leadership our staff and board need to be suc v u s iu i , l ia u c i au u eu . cessful," Trader added. Home Builders Support Legislation to Remove Regulatory Barriers To Affordable Housing C haracterizing it as “an im portant step forward in the effort to stream line the regulatory pro cess, expand housing opportuni ties and elevate housing as a top national priority,” the n atio n ’s home builders today praised leg islation being introduced by Rep. Tom Campbell (R -C alif.) in the House and Senator Ron Wyden (D -O regon) in the Senate. The House bill is co-sponsored by Rep. Jack M etcalf (R -W ash ), Rep. Esteban Torres (D -C a lif), Rep. James Talent (R -M o ), Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D -Ill.), Rep. M ike M cIntyre (D -N .C .) and Rep. Jon Fox (R -Pa.). “The A ffordable Housing Bar rier Removal Act will bring some order and com m on sense to the regulatory process," said Donald D. M artin, an A lbuquerque, New M exico hom e builder and p resi dent ot the 195,000-m em ber N a tio n a l A s s o c ia tio n o f H om e B uilders (NAHB). “ Housing is one o f the most im portant and largest industries in the nation, accounting for Garbage Fees Go Down! A New Convention Center Plan Goes Up! The Metro Council is delivering a double dose o f good news for the people o f this region. On Thursday night, the Council approved two measures which make a great deal of “cents” for people’s pocketbooks. The C ouncil voted to send an $82 m illion proposal to the v o t ers that would fund the com ple tion o f the O regon C onvention Center. The C onvention C enter is a M etro facility; the M etro politan E xposition R ecreation C om m ission (M ERC) m anages the C o n v en tio n C enter. The com pletion is expected to g ener ate an additional $ I 70 m illion in econom ic activity for this region each and every year. The Council also voted to lower the rates Metro charges garbage haul ers at our transfer stations. The rate will go from $70 a ton to about $63.50 a ton. This is important because it could mean lower garbage collection rates or increased services for people throughout the region. a b o u t 12 p e r c e n t o f th e econom y,” M artin added. “ How ever, it is also one o f the n a tio n ’s m ost h ea v ily re g u la ted b u s i nesses, and in som e areas m eet ing regulatory requirem ents can add tens o f thousands o f dollars to the cost o f constructing a m od est single-fam ily home. This leg islation will help make housing and hom eownership more afford able.” Martin pointed out that build ers are often subject to a “ layer ing effect” where num erous regu- lations are stacked on top o f one an o th er. Each re g u la tio n is adopted independently and, by itself, might seem insignificant. But when 10 or 20 seemingly insignificant regulations are lay ered on top o f one another, the cost im plications and delays in herent in m eeting those regula tory requirem ents can be consid erable. One o f the key elem ents of Rep. C am pbell’s legislation is a requirem ent that federal agen cies conduct a housing impact analysis w henever they prom ul gate new regulations related to housing. The bill would also reauthorize incentive grants to encourage localities to remove regulatory barriers, ask the Sec retary o f HUD to conduct a con ference on rem oving regulatory barriers and ask local com m uni ties that receive Com m unity D e velopm ent Block Grants to make a good faith effort to remove regulatory barriers. “ I want to com m end R epre sentative C am pbell and Senator New Facility Provides 90 Beds For Homeless Men An opening cerem ony was held for Clark C enter, the new perm anent facility for hom eless single m ale adults. C lark C en te r re p la c e s the te m p o ra ry hom eless shelter which was lo cated in the R iver D istrict near Union Station. C lark C enter is a 90-bed fa cility and residents typically stay for an average o f 60 days or less. C asew orkers will work with residents to find options for perm anent housing. The fa- McMURPHV'S nPPUflNCC CENTER cility was d eveloped and is owned by the H ousing A uthor ity ot Portland and will be man aged by T ransition Projects, Inc. The opening o f Clark C enter com pletes the city/county S hel ter R econfiguration Plan. The sh elter is nam ed for form er M ayor Bud Clark and former Housing A uthority o f Portland Executive D irector, Don Clark. Both were special guests at the opening. * Sales • Service • Parts NAACP Statement on Merriam-Webster and the N-Word NAA CP P resid en t & CEO Kweisi Mfume released the fo l lowing statem ent regarding an a n n o u n c e m e n t by M e rria m - W ebster that it is “very, very likely there will be a change in the definition o f all offensive w o rd s ,” in c lu d in g th e w ord nigger: “ In O ctober o f last year, the NAACP strongly criticized the M e rria m -W e b ste r C o lle g ia te D ic tio n a ry ’s d e fin itio n o f a n ig g e r’ as a black p e rs o n .’ Since then our m em bers from across the country have been in volved in an extensive cam paign to let M erriam -W ebster know how offensive this definition is. This nationw ide cam paign was directed and carried out through e-m ail, letters, phone calls, faxes and petitions. We are gratified that M erriam - W ebster has finally got the m es sage. Furtherm ore, it is tim ely that an announcem ent has been made by M erriam -W ebster stat ing that they are giving ‘high co n sid eratio n ’ to changing the definition o f this and other ra cially offensive words. Now the NAACP can let the th o u s a n d s o f o u r m em b ers w h o ’ve voiced th eir concerns over the last several months know that th ey ’re concerns have been heard and that progress is on the way. W e h o p e th a t M e rria m - W ebster will follow -up on their announcem ent and im plem ent thosechanges in tim e forthe next edition o f their dictionary. The NAACP has also been asked by concerned citizens to review the structure o f the com pany along the lines o f our Eco 4011 N.E. M.L.K. Portland, OR 97212 (503) 288-3233 nom ic R ecip ro c ity In itiativ e. This econom ic developm ent ini tiativ e is a cam paign to bring about a reciprocal relationship betw een A frican Am erican co n sum ers and corporate Am erica. We will be req uesting that M erriam -W ebster share with the NAACP their records on procure m ent, em ploym ent, prom otion and the m akeup o fth e ir board o f directors to determ ine if a cu l ture within the company has made it d ifficult for them to recognize why this definition is u n accep t able to m illions o f A m ericans.” School v ThatFitS Y o u r u fe Flexible program s. Cashing in on Cash Flow-The Emergence of a New Industry The following is the first in a 2- part series about a new industry known as Diversified Cash Flow. “Are You Receiving Payments From a Structured Settlement or Annuity but You Need Cash Now?” You’ve seen the commercials offer ing to buy your future payments for a lump sum of cash. Are these compa nies legitimate? Is this even legal? what you are seeing is the emergence o f a new industry known as Diversi fied Cash Flow, an industry which offers exciting new finance options. Formerly, a person receiving peri odic payments who had an emer gency need for cash could not access their money, nor would any banks lend against it. Now, that person may sell all, or part o f their future pay ments at a discount fora lump-sum of cash they can use right away to pay off debts, go to college, even buy a business. Many types o f income streams can be sold and you should consult a qualified broker to discuss your op tions. For example, a person with a terminal illness may be able to con vert their life insurance death ben efits into usable cash now, when the need is greatest. (These “living ben- efits” are known as Viaticáis.) Inher itances, which take forever in pro bate, can be sold quickly. And lot- tery/gaming winners really don’t have to wait 10-20 years to get their money anymore. These are just a few of the areas that are bing sold in the cash flow market. Is it legal? You bet it is. But, a more important question might be is it ethical? In some cases, no. If the beneficiary is a minor, or is unable to manage their money, then future payments should not be sold. The same is true if a person is disabled and relies on this money Wyden for drafting and intro ducing this im portant leg isla tio n ,” Martin added. “ Even m od est decreases in the cost o f a new hom e w ill open the d o o r to hom eownership for families who are now priced out of the market. Ultim ately, this will raise the n atio n ’s homeownership rate and stren g th en both fam ilies and communities. I urge C ongress to enact this legislation and take the first step toward re- estab lishing housing as a national pri o rity .” C o nvenient class tim es. Classes a t th re e cam puses, th re e centers, and 200 neighborhood locations. for their support. However, more and more people are asking them selves, “At the rate o f inflation, vwhat will be the true value of these payments when they arrive years from now? could I make better investments if I had this money today?” Could you? Virginia Dunn is a certified Di versified Cash Flow Specialist, and a member of the Association for Fi nancial & Debt Instrument Profes sionals. She is the owner of Integrity Funding Sources in Portland, Or egon and can be reached (a) 503-493- 2577. A ffordable tu itio n . ♦ Start on a bachelor’s degree. ♦ Train for a new career. ♦ Upgrade your job skills. ♦ Enhance your life. Register now. Classes start March 30. Call 977-4382 for Portland information or visit our web site at www.pcc.edu. Community Cascade Cam pus d College
