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After years of conversations, a project work group is seeking a developer for the Williams & Russell project in North Portland.

A was issued Feb. 11, and responses are due by April 8.

The RFP marks a major stepping-stone in the yearslong effort to right historic wrongs at the 1.7-acre property bordered by North Williams and Vancouver avenues and Russell and Knott streets.

A developer’s values, familiarity with the community and commitment to an open process will be crucial, members of the work group said.

鈥淲e’re also looking for the right development partner to make sure that whatever happens here is responsive to the outcomes that we’re looking for,鈥� said Justice Rajee, a member of the work group and a longtime community advocate.

The property is owned by Legacy Health. The hospital group has pledged to convey the property for free to a nonprofit entity that will be formed for the project, according to the RFP.

The push to build a values-driven project on the vacant parcel dates to 2017, when Prosper Portland officials discovered a 1980 deed provision that required Emanuel Hospital (now Legacy) to develop the property by 1990. That discovery, which was first reported by the 91视频, led to a memorandum of understanding involving Prosper Portland, Legacy, the city of Portland and the work group.

鈥淭he idea is that there is a restorative justice component,鈥� said Bryson Davis, another member of the work group and a lawyer at Sussman Shank. 鈥淪ome of the goal is righting the wrongs of the hospital expansion, and since the hospital expansion.鈥�

The property once had a large mixed-use building known as the Hill Block, which housed Black-owned businesses and featured a distinctive onion-shaped cupola that now resides in Dawson Park. The building was razed, as were 158 residences and 30 total commercial properties that were located in the heart of Portland’s Black community in the early 1970s as part of an expansion of Emanuel Hospital. The land has sat vacant for about 50 years as a gentrification-fueled building boom swept over the neighborhood.

The eventual development is likely to include housing. About $7.5 million has been earmarked for the project by the Portland Housing Bureau, Davis said. The project also stands to get millions of dollars from Prosper Portland via urban renewal area funds; an exact figure has not been determined.

Prosper Portland’s board in March 2020 added the property to the Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area, making it eligible for millions of dollars in tax-increment financing.

鈥淭he expectation is we’ll have some funding from them, but we haven’t gotten a number,鈥� Davis said.

Funding from Prosper Portland is expected to be 鈥渟omewhere north of $10 million,鈥� he added.

The project also has money for predevelopment and operations remaining from a Meyer Memorial Trust grant.

Project work group members expect the project will attract Black-owned contractors and a developer with experience handling values-driven local projects.

鈥淭he focus is really on the who 鈥� who is on the team, what their experience is and their record doing projects that have a community voice,鈥� Davis said.

Capacity also will be important, he added.

鈥淲e’re not going to pick a developer who will immediately start in over their heads,鈥� he said.

Whichever team is chosen, a 鈥渟emi-public process鈥� will continue to be used in which meetings with various advisory groups take place, Davis said.

鈥淭here’s always going to be the voices at the table that we want at the table for the project as it moves forward,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he idea behind this is to keep everything open, so you don’t have too many cooks in the kitchen, but you can see the kitchen and talk to the cooks.鈥�

Affordable housing is a likely component, given funding from the Housing Bureau and the work group’s goals. The RFP mentions both affordable rental housing and affordable home ownership as potential developments.

鈥淭here’s a preference for ownership, but there’s a recognition that you can impact a higher number of people with rental,鈥� Davis said. 鈥淭he shape of the housing is still to be determined as far as what’s feasible, and what makes sense and what has the highest impact.鈥�

The work group also expressed a desire for education and workforce training space, community space and entrepreneur space.

Legacy’s ongoing involvement in the property that it let sit vacant for decades is another open question. The RFP states that Legacy Health 鈥渨ill convey the 1.7-acre property for no consideration to the body selected by the Project Working Group to implement the project that supports and honors Portland’s African-American community as described in the MOU.鈥� The RFP also mentions the 鈥減otential for Legacy-owned or leased medical facilities based on the (project work group’s) direction.鈥�

It’s not clear what type of medical facilities Legacy envisions for the property. A Legacy spokesman could not be reached for comment.

Project backers hope Williams & Russell will serve as a model for developments focused on restorative and racial justice.

鈥淥ur intention,鈥� Rajee said, 鈥渋s to honor what the community has stated.鈥�