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Committee gives Albina Vision Trust time-limited opportunity to negotiate development near Moda Center
Summary
The committee directed staff to begin negotiating with Albina Vision Trust to explore development of city-owned parcels adjacent to the Moda Center, adding a 12-month negotiation window and language requiring staff to return to council if terms cannot be reached; the measure will be forwarded to full council.
The City Life Committee voted Aug. 11 to refer a resolution to the full council directing the city administrator to begin a process to identify and negotiate with a development partner for city-owned parcels near the Moda Center and Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The committee's action specifically acknowledged Albina Vision Trust (AVT) as a leading candidate and added a 12-month negotiation timeline and safeguards before any final disposition of city land.
Councilors sponsoring the resolution said the decision is intended to advance restorative development in Lower Albina, to reconnect neighborhoods divided by mid-20th-century freeway and urban renewal projects, and to maximize community benefits. "Albina Vision Trust has spent years developing a comprehensive vision ... for the restoration of Lower Albina broadly," the committee sponsor said, urging a partnership that advances community wealth building and long-term affordability.
Winta Yohannes, AVT's executive director, highlighted recent AVT projects and workforce and affordability outcomes, saying Albina 1 opened last summer with permanently affordable units and strong BIPOC apprenticeship results. "When we hired our general contractor for that building, when they put the crane in the sky, that was only the second time in Oregon State history that that was true," she said, citing AVT's local development track record.
Councilor Avalos's amendment created a time-limited opportunity for AVT to negotiate and required administrators to return to council if mutually acceptable terms could not be reached within 12 months; language initially described as "exclusive" was removed after administration counsel said the city should retain flexibility to follow a standard disposition process if necessary. The committee adopted the amendment and then voted to send the amended resolution to full council with a recommendation to adopt.
