Strategy in Action

The Vanport Square commercial condominium project, opened in 2008, is a public-private partnership that provides 40,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and office space. Of the 16 total commercial units, 14 were sold to business owners and two were offered for lease. The goal was to attract locally owned small businesses and provide opportunities for them to own, expand, and build wealth in the underinvested Albina neighborhood in Northeast Portland. The development, which revitalized an old industrial building, was financed using New Market Tax Credits, which allowed new condo owners to access low interest loans, making ownership more accessible.