In an era when all housing construction is deemed a public necessity, the Pearl District Neighborhood Association is making a distinction.
Poorly managed public housing that harms the surrounding neighborhood chills future development and should be opposed, the association contends.
PDNA voted unanimously to pause construction of a 219-unit apartment building at Northwest Ninth and Johnson streets proposed by Home Forward. In a letter to the mayor and City Council, the association laid out four conditions for its support.
Reassess current neighborhood economic, social and public safety conditions.
2. Establish a neighborhood livability and safety plan with measurable goals and a clear timeline.
3. Ensure safe access to essential services, including clear and safe pedestrian access, for building residents.
4. Verify that Home Forward, which “has not demonstrated satisfactory management of its existing Pearl District properties,” has the capacity to manage the building.
“Our goal is not to stop redevelopment, but to ensure its success,” concluded the letter. Addressing these concerns before construction begins will protect future residents, strengthen surrounding neighborhoods, encourage future investment and safeguard the city’s substantial public commitment.”
The only pushback to that position came from PDNA Planning and Transportation Committee Chair Sean Sweat.
“When’s the last time we saw a crane in the Pearl?” Sweat asked. “If our neighborhood’s going to come back, we’re going have to become a neighborhood people want to build in again, and I don’t think stopping building is going to help us the way we think it might.
“I’m concerned about the Pearl getting tagged as a bunch of NIMBYs who will fight developers tooth and nail,” said Sweat, who abstained from voting.
“I think there are lots of risks with this, including poisoning the well for the future, which I think is the biggest risk,” countered PDNA President Bruce Studer. “The failure to launch a successful project will doom other projects in that area.”
The Home Forward building is the first proposed in the 14-acre former U.S. Postal Service Property between Northwest Hoyt, Lovejoy, Broadway and Ninth streets.
I’m sick of legitimate concerns about public safety, neighborhood blight, and government accountability being dismissed with the lazy label “NIMBY.” Portland “progressives” have weaponized name-calling to the point that these terms have lost all meaning. It’s a tactic to silence dissent rather than address real problems, and it’s not working out well, so let’s stop giving it credence.
As someone who has lived in the Pearl for years, I fully support this pause and the pushback demanding accountability from government agencies that have failed residents for far too long. Our neighborhood deserves better than the hand we have been dealt for really the last decade. I hope the association stands their ground. It’s time for accountability and a halt on bad ideas and bad management.
The Pearl District Neighborhood Association is right on the mark in opposing/pausing construction of the 219 unit housing project. It seems that the City's track record for these projects is not good and the neighborhood will likely suffer as a result.
The neighborhood's concerns are NOT NIMBY. Residents are genuine worried about the adverse conditions that will exacerbate an already suffering area. It seems this project amounts to a "taking", i.e., the City knowingly reducing the value of existing residential properties by siting, building and operating this facility.