MARCH 21, 2018
25
CENTS
Portland and Seattle Volume XL No. 25
News .............................. 3,8-10 A & E .....................................6-7
Opinion ...................................2 Putin ................................9
Calendars ........................... 4-5 Bids/Classifieds ....................11
CHALLENGING PEOPLE TO SHAPE A BETTER FUTURE NOW
MEYER’S NEW HOME
Residency
Supports
Artists
of Color
‘Art Saved My Life’ will
select three local artists
to create works around
community healing
By Melanie Sevcenko
For The Skanner News
I
n a new twist on the ‘artist residen-
cy,’ a group of Portland creatives are
launching ‘Art Saved My Life’ – a
local program that supports Artists
of Color who have been impacted by
the city’s decades-long struggle with
gentrification, forced relocation and
AP PHOTO/JOSSY OLA
See ART on page 3
People gather outside the general hospital where
the kidnapped girls from the Government Girls
Science and Technical College Dapchi who were
released are being treated, in Dapchi, Nigeria,
March 21.
Boko Haram
Returns
Nigeria Girls
page 10
August Wilson’s ‘Two
Training Running’ Comes
to Portland
page 7
PHOTO COURTESY OF MEYER MEMORIAL TRUST
‘Art Saved My Life’ is an artist residency program
that supports Portland-based Artists of Color to
create works around healing from gentrification.
This lot at 2045 N. Vancouver will be the new headquarters of Meyer Memorial Trust, one of Oregon’s largest philanthropic organizations. The foundation
intends to relocate in March 2020.
Meyer Memorial Trust to Relocate in 2020
Foundation announces purchase of property on North Vancouver
By Christen McCurdy
Of The Skanner News
M
eyer
Memorial
Trust is moving
to close-in North
Portland.
The state’s second larg-
est foundation, which
manages an $800 million
endowment created by
grocery-chain
found-
er Fred Meyer, has an-
nounced its purchase of a
25,000-square-foot lot at
the intersection of North
Tillamook and Vancou-
ver. Foundation CEO Doug
Stamm, who retires at the
end of April, said the orga-
nization will move into the
new spot in March 2020.
Public records say the
lot sold for $4.9 million in
January. Foundation CEO
Doug Stamm said Meyer’s
lease at its long-term office
is coming to an end, and
higher-ups started look-
ing for a new location to
house its increased staff.
When Stamm started 16
years ago, the foundation
employed 11 people; it now
employs 43.
The 25,000-square-foot
site currently hosts Ser-
geant’s Towing, which had
owned the property since
2000.
“We think it’ll be an im-
provement over a tow
yard,” Stamm said. “Not too
many people show up at
the tow yard very happy, I
can tell you that.”
Meyer has engaged the
development firm Project^
and is in discussions with
an architect. The founda-
tion is also talking with
community partners about
what the end result should
look like.
Anyeley Hallová, a part-
ner at Project^, said the
site was chosen partly for
its proximity to transit and
the availability of park-
ing for partners driving
in from elsewhere in the
state. She also said Stamm
and others stressed the im-
portance of developing a
site that wouldn’t displace
anyone from their homes.
“The conversation we’ve
had has been less about
what is on site but with
Meyer being there, how
that can be a positive con-
See MEYER on page 3
REPORT: One in Three Oregonians Struggle to
Afford Housing
Housing crisis
has hit renters
especially hard
The Skanner News Staff
O
ne in three Oregon families
struggle to afford housing,
and renters have been hit
especially hard, says a new
report detailing the extent of the
state’s housing crisis.
Last week the Oregon Center
for Public Policy found a quarter
See HOUSING on page 3
Oregon households of color more likely to rent
Share of racial or ethnic group renting their residence in Oregon in 2016
70%
Black/African-American
Hispanic/Latino
58%
American Indian/Alaskan Native
58%
57%
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
53%
Other Race
52%
2+ Races
42%
Asian
White (Non-Hispanic)
35%
All groups have a statistically significant difference compared to white (non-Hispanic) households at the 90%
confidence level.
Source: OCPP analysis of Census Bureau American Community Survey data.
O REGON C ENTER FOR P UBLIC P OLICY | OCPP.ORG