A social services organization has launched a new housing initiative to develop affordable housing alongside its wraparound services for the neighborhood.

Self Enhancement Inc.’s housing initiative, SEI Living, will break ground this summer with two projects: Mississippi Heights and Ruby-Mac Place.

SEI Living builds on SEI’s work co-developing affordable housing projects across Portland. In partnership with Community Development Partners (CDP), SEI co-developed the Alberta Alive affordable housing initiative, which includes five developments along Northeast Alberta Street; most recently the Luther Strong Jr. and Dr. Jackie Strong Empowerment Village.

SEI has been serving Portland for 45 years. Its work started with service to young people and then expanded to wrap-around services from “cradle to career,” said Trent Aldridge, chief executive officer of SEI, adding that the programming has been ongoing for three decades.

“In the last seven to eight years our housing department was one of the most referred parts of our programming,” Aldridge said. “Affordability really just became one of the main things we were working toward.”

Each SEI Living development, starting with Mississippi Heights and Ruby-Mac Place, will include SEI’s own wraparound services in the neighborhood, which include 40 programs and 400 services. These will include case management, after school programs, summer programming, sports, food pantries, educational support, health services and basic needs.

“Our approach here, the end result isn’t stable housing,” Aldridge said. “Getting into a place where you can pay your rent isn’t the end for us.”

SEI’s approach is to get residents stabilized with services such as mental health support, finishing school, job readiness such as working on resumes and supporting students with after school and summer programs.

“We want you to be able to go from stable at 30 percent to much more stable at 60 percent, getting you ready for the Ruby-Mac, which is 80 percent AMI,” Aldridge said. “You would get some support to get a stabilized job but also ready to rent or homeownership opportunities and first-time homebuyer programs.”

SEI Living’s first project, Mississippi Heights, is expected to break ground in a few weeks and be complete by September 2027.

Located at 4424 N. Mississippi Ave. in the historic Albina district in North Portland, the development will provide larger two- and three-bedroom units for families. The five-story, 29,465-square-foot building features 30 one-, two- and three-bedroom units, a community room, offices and support spaces for resident services. The units will be for households making no more than 60 percent of the area’s median income, with about 25 percent of the units dedicated to Permanent Supportive Housing.

The project team includes architect MWA Architects, Vega Civil Engineering, structural engineer VALAR Consulting Engineering of Clackamas, landscape architect Bothwell Landscape Studio, geotech Pali Consulting of West Linn and general contractor Walsh Construction Co.

Mississippi Heights is estimated to cost $24.5 million.

The second project, Ruby-Mac Place, is scheduled to break ground in September and be complete by mid-2028.

Located at 9801 N.E. 13th Ave. in Northeast Portland, the project will create 49 affordable homes designed to help families build stability and generational wealth, according to SEI.

The development will be managed under a community land trust model, with homeowners owning their homes and SEI maintaining ownership of the land over the long term. The development will offer homes for purchase to households earning up to 80 percent of the area median income.

Aldridge said the idea of Ruby-Mac Place is to get people across the threshold to own a home and take the equity built and be able to afford to buy a market-rate home in Portland in the future. SEI will offer services for the neighborhood, such as learning to take care of a home.

The net-zero development will feature a mix of single-family homes, cottages, duplexes and townhomes on a 6.5-acre site. Homes will be built using modular construction and net-zero energy design.

The project team includes architectural partners Propel Studio Architecture and Green Canopy NODE of Seattle, civil engineer and landscape architect Stantec, structural engineer Froelich Engineers, Pali Consulting and general contractor Colas Construction.

Ruby-Mac Place is estimated to cost $22.6 million.

Aldridge said SEI has a pipeline system so there will always be something in predevelopment. The organization plans to do this work in communities where they have roots in the schools and the community.

Up next, SEI plans to close on Garfield Commons at the end of the summer. It will be a 59-unit affordable housing building. In July or August 2027, SEI expects to break ground on the fourth planned project, another affordable housing project for the Gordly Burch House. The house is formerly the childhood family home of Oregon’s first Black woman senator, Avel Louise Gordly. The first floor will honor the Gordly family.

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Project name: Francis + Clare Place

Location: Portland

Completion: September 2024

Size: 35,844 square feet

Owner/Developer: Catholic Charities

Architect: Holst Architecture

Engineers: Valar Consulting Engineering, Vega Civil Engineering, O’Neill Construction Group

General Contractor: O’Neill Walsh Community Builders

Submitting Company: Walsh Construction

Other Key Associates: Caritas Housing/Catholic Charities of Oregon, Cascadia Health, Edlen & Co., Guardian Property Management, Home Forward, Joint Office of Homeless Services, Native American Rehabilitation Association, Portland Clean Energy Fund, Portland Housing Bureau, St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church

Subcontractors: Academy Specialties, Ambrose Glass, American Heating, Andres Landscape, Asbestos Abatement Contracting, Axiom Roofing Oregon, Bridgeport Interiors, Brothers Construction, Brown’s Architectural Sheetmetal, Bryker Enterprises, Builders Appliance Supply, Burgener’s Woodworking, Central City Concern, Christenson Electric, Civic Construction, Compaction and Recycling Equipment, Contemporary Visions Signs & Wayfinding, Elemental Energy, Grant Painting, Hillebrand Construction, Interior Technology, Kodiak Pacific Construction, Kone, Lanz Cabinet Shop, Lauzon Contracting, Mid-Valley Glass & Millwork, MLS Interiors, Northstar CG, Northwest Millwork, O’Neill Construction Group, PARCA Floors, Pioneer Waterproofing, Precision Countertops, RDF Builders, Tikka Masonry, Triad Fire Protection, Ultra Quiet Floors, Vale Insulation Group, VPI Quality Windows, Zion Metal Work,

Francis + Clare Place, a new 61-unit supportive housing development in Portland’s Central Eastside, is working to redefine the transition out of homelessness by combining stable housing with extensive wraparound services.

The development provides permanent homes for adults with complex physical and behavioral health challenges, featuring 54 studios and seven one-bedroom apartments. All units receive rent subsidies through Project-Based Section 8 vouchers.

Francis + Clare Place serves households who may face challenges finding and maintaining stable housing in the private rental market. The project aims to help residents settle into a stable and comfortable home they can call their own. What distinguishes the development is its comprehensive approach to ending homelessness. The ground floor houses offices for supportive services and property management, along with a food pantry, bike room and community room that serves as a gathering space with a communal kitchen.

Catholic Charities partnered with Native American Rehabilitation Association (NARA), which specializes in culturally-specific recovery services, and Cascadia Health, which focuses on behavioral health. Together, the organizations provide case management, housing stabilization and peer support.

The new building goes beyond giving people a room. Residents have direct access to case managers who provide one-on-one support and connect them to outside resources. Through donations from local organizations and funding from the Joint Office of Homeless Services, Catholic Charities provides residents access to healthy food, clothing, household supplies, hygiene products and other necessities.

Community activities are central to the project’s mission. The communal area hosts daily events including morning coffee gatherings, bingo, movie nights, open mics, arts and crafts, and potluck dinners.

The building’s design incorporates trauma-informed elements featuring ample light, clear wayfinding, soothing colors and connections to nature. All residents are referred through Multnomah County’s Coordinated Access system.

Catholic Charities used Portland Clean Energy Fund dollars to install heat pumps and a photovoltaic solar array to ensure energy efficiency and eliminate electrical billing for residents. Each unit includes air conditioning.

The L-shaped building maximizes units on the tight site, which was purchased from St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. The project complements the adjacent public courtyard and St. Francis Park Apartments, also developed by Catholic Charities.

To enhance on-site safety and improve operational efficiency on the jobsite, Walsh Construction developed a proprietary AI-powered chatbot app specifically for the construction field. This tool offered instant, real-time answers to safety-related questions.

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