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Ground was broken recently on a mixed-use development intended to serve displaced and longtime residents of North/Northeast Portland. 5020 N. Interstate, featuring 63 affordable apartments and on-site resident services, is expected to open in late 2023.

LMC Construction is building the development, designed by Carleton Hart Architecture, at 5020 N. Interstate Ave., in the Overlook neighborhood. The project is one piece of an effort by co-development partners Self Enhancement Inc. (SEI) and Community Development Partners (CDP) to renew a thriving Black presence in the area.

SEI, which has focused on helping Black youth and families realize their full potential, is taking on a new role as a co-developer. This is a natural next step for the organization, SEI president and CEO Tony Hopson Sr. said.

5020 N. Interstate is part of Alberta Alive 鈥� three projects SEI and CDP are working on together. The others, at 506 N.E. Alberta St. and 4957 N.E. Eighth Ave., are set to open by mid-2023. Meanwhile, Alberta Abbey, an existing nonprofit arts center, will serve as an extension of the three housing communities and provide space for residents to gather for events.

The focus of 5020 N. Interstate is on serving larger families with children. There will be 25 three-bedroom units, 23 two-bedroom units, and 15 one-bedroom units. All apartments will be available to households earning 60 percent of area median income or less.

The development will include a small community garden, a playground and courtyard, ground-floor common space, and 2,500 square feet of commercial space that will be made available to Black-owned businesses and entrepreneurs. Also, several murals are planned.

鈥淲e’re planning on continuing with what we’re doing on the first two buildings on Alberta Alive where we’ve been working with a consultant and an artist to curate culturally relevant artwork for the common areas as part of our strategy on placemaking,鈥� CDP CEO Eric Paine said.

The development aligns with the city’s North/Northeast Preference Policy, which seeks to counter the harm caused by decades of public and private disinvestment in the area and urban renewal practices that displaced many Black residents. Under the policy, current and former residents of this historic heart of Portland’s Black community, as well as people with generational ties to the area, are considered before others for new affordable housing opportunities in the area.

Many Black families who live in North/Northeast Portland don’t see Blacks involved in any of the decision-making for development in their neighborhoods, Hopson said. But the partnership with CDP gives SEI full input on 5020 N. Interstate.

鈥淲e see this being more than anything that has happened prior to now in the African American community a partnership like this that gives us full say of what this thing should ultimately look like for the people that we serve,鈥� Hopson said.

While CDP has supplied development expertise and technical know-how, SEI’s community rootedness has added value to the design, Paine said.

The total project cost for 5020 N. Interstate is approximately $32.36 million. Much of that will be paid for via $9.2 million from Metro‘s affordable housing bond program, $14.7 million in Oregon Affordable Housing Tax Credits, and grant money from Metro’s Transit-Oriented Development program.