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& he
Ißortknib (fibserüer
lune 25, 2014
Revisiting Alberta
in the city, totaling about 8 per­ B oarded up properties, vacant
sources.
cent o f the population even to­ lots, litter, garbage, and wildflow ­
Grice, a lifelong mentor to young
day.
ers were some o f the comm on re­ black m ales in Portland, said a
occupied, particularly of note
At the time northeast Portland
c o n t i n u e d f r o m front
alities on this side o f town.
revival o f the Alberta Street study
since African Americans were and was home to about two thirds of
“There really wasn ’ t much here,” would present a huge opportu­
remain an overwhelming minority P o rtla n d ’s abandoned houses.
said Nate Hartley, an African Ameri­ nity for not only for students but
can business owner who set up his the city as well.
petroleum and oil company on
The proposed “A lberta Street
Alberta Street back in 1991. He says 2014 Project, Cultural Resource
the area was severely blighted at the In v en to ry w ith R eco m m en d a­
time. “For blocks, it was way differ­ tions” project would em ploy up to
ent, there were no businesses,” the 20 high school pupils from the
74-year-old said.
m inority com m unity for 8 weeks.
W ith more than two successful Duplicating the exact same bound­
decades under his belt at his cur­ aries as the ’92 report, the stu­
rent location, H artley says the dents would use updated maps,
econom ic upshift in the area that m odels and pictures, and conduct
has been good for business but their own interview s o f current
he wishes the upturn did not leave residents and business owners.
so m any other black people be­ The end result would be a presen­
hind. Hartley is one o f the few tation o f recom m endations to the
rem aining black business owners Portland City Council based upon
on A lberta today.
their hands-on research.
H igh-end grocers, healthy eat­
Ultimately, Grice would like the
eries, galleries, and coffee shops new study to serve as a national
now sit in place of the blem ishes model on how not only to push
that not long ago were com m on- . back against gentrification, but
„ '■ f
place in the cen trally located build com m unity wealth in ne­
neighborhood. Many o f the black glected areas. They w ould look at
fam ilies that called the area home how the econom y o f the area
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now live on the outskirts o f the changed, exam ine what led to the
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city. Census figures show that in displacem ent o f form er residents,
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the few neighborhoods that were and talk with current occupants
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m a jo rity b la c k , w h ite s h av e o f the neighborhood’s hom es and
quickly becom e the m ajority.
b u sin esses.
7- A
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Am ongst this reality, Grice and
Current collaborators for the
Zybach want to recreate a project project’s renew al include Oregon
that can hire young, m inority resi­ W ebsites and W atershed Project,
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dents to study the current issues Inc.; W orld Arts Foundation, Inc.,
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facing Alberta. This time, the pair C ascade Pacific C ouncil, Boy
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says the students can tackle is­ Scouts o f Am erica, and the Port­
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sues more pertinent to the time, land D evelopm ent Com m ission.
PO R TLA N D
like gentrification, gang violence,
G rice and Zaybach have been
and the m onthly arts walk “Last attem pting to regain contact with
T hursday” which has infused the the o rig in al six stu d en ts that
thoroughfare with festivities start­ brought the first project to frui­
ing in 1997, but also spills crowds, tion. To date th ey ’ve been suc­
noise and parked vehicles into cessful locating M onica Owens
adjoining residential properties. who was not only elated to hear
The area is now popularly referred from her two form er project lead­
to as the “A lberta Arts D istrict.” ers, but inform ed them that listing
U sin g n e w s p a p e r a rtic le s , the project on her resum e’ in her
b o o k s/ black and white photo­ early days got her into jo b s she
graphs, hand draw n diagram s and w ouldn’t have been considered
other tools at their disposal, the for otherw ise.
original study’s 150-page report
For m ore inform ation on the
concluded Portland’s black popu­ new initiative or how to get in­
lation was being neglected and v o lv e d , e m a il Z y b a c h at
Truly making a difference in the lives of
system atically left for poor but ZybachB@ O RW W .org or Grice
Auto Accident victims and Injured Workers for nearly 20 years.
was sitting on a wealth o f re­ at m cg@ nothingbutquality.com .
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