The Urban League of Portland was proud to host the ribbon-cutting ceremony for M Carter Commons, an affordable housing development in the Overlook neighborhood of Portland, on Tuesday, August 11th.
This is the fourth building co-developed by the Urban League of Portland that is named after a Black woman who dedicated her life and career to improving, caring and advancing Portland’s Black community. The 62-unit senior affordable and low-cost apartments are named after Oregon’s first Black woman legislator and former Urban League of Portland Executive Director Margaret Louise Carter.
The development also honors the Black communities who have historically been displaced from Portland neighborhoods and the ongoing efforts to create opportunities for them to return and thrive. Housing priority will be given to those interested in returning to the area under the N/ NE Preference Policy.
"M Carter Commons honors Sen. Margaret Carter's legacy in name, and in purpose,” Metro Council President Juan Carlos González said. “For generations, discriminatory housing policies, urban renewal and displacement denied Black Portlanders the opportunity to remain in the very communities they helped build. With support from the Metro Affordable Housing Bond, this community offers affordable options that will allow elders to reconnect to, or remain rooted in, the neighborhood they call home.”
The event brought together several speakers who shared what the collaborative project means to the community. Attendees heard from former Senator Margaret Carter, Northwest Housing Alternatives CEO and Executive Director Trell Anderson, Portland City Administrator Raymond C. Lee III, former Oregon State Sen. Betsy Johnson and others. Attendees also participated in a tour of the building’s amenities, apartments, and community spaces.
M Carter Commons will use a low barrier screening process to improve applicant access to this new housing. Approximately one-third of the apartments will be affordable to people with very low incomes (30% or below the area median income).
This project was made possible through the collective efforts of partners from across the state, including Northwest Housing Alternatives, Oregon Metro and Kaiser Permanente. The project received $9.2 million from the voter-approved Metro Affordable Housing Bond awarded by the Portland Housing Bureau. It also received a $300,000 grant from the Metro Transit-Oriented Development program, which supports affordable housing located near high-frequency public transit.
Kaiser Permanente donated the land, and its North Interstate campus is adjacent to the site and provides about 11 acres of recreational space. Fred Meyer and New Seasons grocery stores are approximately 1.5 miles and one mile to the north along the MAX Yellow Line.