Celebrating ‘City of Roses’ BLACK HISTORY MONTH Volume XLVIII • Number 8 www.portlandobserver.com Wednesday • February 20, 2019 Established in 1970 Committed to Cultural Diversity photo by D anny p eterson /t he p ortlanD o bserver Community leaders break ground Friday on a new 70 unit affordable housing complex at Northeast Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks Way. The project by Portland Community Reinvestment, Inc. (PCRI), a housing provider rooted in the African American community, is the nonprofit’s second major effort to create housing for people who have been displaced from inner north and northeast Portland. Pictured (from left) are Nancy Merryman of Merryman Barnes Architects, Oregon Public Health Institute Chief Executive Officer Cyreena Boston Ashby, PCRI Executive Director Maxine Fitzpatrick, former City Commissioner Dan Saltzman, Colas Construction’s Andrew and Hermann Colas, Office of Mayor Ted Wheeler representative Cupid Alexander, Umpqua Bank Affordable Housing Manager Gina Leon, and US Bank CDC Manager Jodi Enos. Mitigating Displacement Nonprofit breaks ground for second major build by D anny p eterson t he p ortlanD o bserver A new 70 rental-unit affordable housing development in the heart Portland’s his- toric African American community began construction Friday, marking continued progress on a longtime housing provider’s effort to mitigate and reverse displacement of primarily the black community, indige- nous populations, and other long-term and low-income residents, in partnership with the city of Portland. Officials with Portland Community Reinvestment Initiatives, Inc. (PCRI), the nonprofit behind the soon-to-be Kings + Parks building on the corner of Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Rosa Parks Way, said the effort is a part of its Pathway 1000 initiative designed to ad- dress a long history of urban renewal and other actions by city government in north and northeast Portland that have historical- ly marginalized and displaced many res- idents, mostly low income and people of color. “King Parks is another step in the right direction that seeks to correct the hous- ing issues caused by income disparities in the city of Portland and State of Oregon. Beyond the brick and mortar develop- ment, this project, implemented through the Pathway 1000 strategy, also addresses unemployment, under employment, wage disparities and the inequitable treatment C ontinueD on p age 4