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In North Portland’s New Columbia neighborhood, a pocket park is dedicated to Richard Brownstein. Though the Portland attorney was honored often during his 58-year career, it was the small park in the revitalized affordable housing development that touched Brownstein the most.

Brownstein, who died Jan. 24 at age 80, was a longtime champion of Portland’s efforts to develop quality affordable housing for low-income residents. He served as president of the Housing and Development Law Institute from 1986-88, and as general counsel for the Housing Authority of Portland from 1960 to 2004.

“He got to become quite an expert in public housing law, and he clearly cared about our mission and for people who had less,” said Steve Rudman, HAP’s executive director. “Dick was a class act and a real gentleman. He was a great guy who will be sorely missed.”

Rudman noted that Brownstein worked closely with Fred Rosenbaum, a former HAP board chairman who died last year. The friends teamed up to build neighborhood support for Hillsdale Terrace, one of Portland’s first suburban public housing developments.

Brownstein, born June 29, 1930, in Los Angeles, graduated from Lincoln High School and attended Reed College before earning his law degree from Willamette University in 1953. He practiced for 20 years with the firm that was ultimately named White, Sutherland, Brownstein & Parks.

In 1973, Brownstein founded Portland’s Brownstein, Rask, Sweeney, Kerr, Grim, DeSylvia & Hay. He specialized in business, real estate, housing and urban development, estate planning and probate law, and continued to practice up until his death.

Andrew Kerr, who began working with Brownstein in 1968 and later became his law partner, said he was continually impressed by Brownstein’s sincere concern for his clients.

“He cared about them and about their welfare, and that was always foremost in his mind. And because he was a caring, concerned citizen, he tended to attract clients that shared the same values,” Kerr said.

He also admired Brownstein’s commitment to community involvement, which included volunteering his time and expertise to the Senior Law Project, a legal aid program, and delivering for Meals On Wheels.

“From a personal standpoint, his loss was really devastating because he always had good, thoughtful words on whatever the events of the day were,” Kerr said.

Miles Sweeney, another partner with the firm, began working with Brownstein in 1965 and said he admired Brownstein’s intelligence and demeanor.

“It’s pretty amazing that in all of our years together, while we didn’t always agree, we never had an argument. He had great capability in making you see his side, whatever the situation was,” he said.

Sweeney praised Brownstein as a consummate business lawyer and gifted storyteller. “He always had an appropriate story for the occasion, and he was a very young 80-year-old.”

Brownstein was a retired colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves, Judge Advocate General’s Corps. He was a member of the Multnomah Bar Association and served in several leadership positions for the Oregon State Bar.

Brownstein dedicated much of his time to community causes and organizations. He was a member of the Portland Civil Rights Committee, the Oregon Advisory Committee of the U.S. Civil Rights Committee, the Committee on Integration of Portland Schools of the Portland City Club and chairman of the Metropolitan Human Rights Commission.

An active member of Portland’s Jewish community, Brownstein was president of Portland Lodge, B’nai B’rith, Congregation Neveh Shalom and the Institute of Jewish Studies; vice president of Jewish Federation of Greater Portland; a director of the Mittleman Jewish Community Center; and a member of the board of governors of B’nai B’rith International.

Among his pro bono work, Brownstein represented Cedar Sinai Park when it issued $11.5 million in revenue bonds for the construction of the Rose Schnitzer Manor in 1996. He also served as issuer’s counsel for Cedar Sinai in 2005 when it issued $9.2 million in revenue refunding bonds.

Brownstein, an avid runner, competed in 19 marathons during his lifetime. He ran his first marathon when he was 54.