Dear Friend, Prior to the Great Depression, Black Portlanders built vibrant communities throughout the city in Old Town, Northeast Portland neighborhoods, and what is now the Pearl District. But by 1940, half of Portland’s Black population was confined to the Albina district because of racist economic and political forces.When the Columbia River flooded in 1948 it destroyed Vanport—then the largest housing project in the United States and home to laborers powering Portland-area shipyards—and left over 18,000 people homeless, nearly a third of them Black Portlanders.  Discriminatory housing practices like redlining gave Vanport’s displaced residents no other alternative than to resettle in Lower Albina. Despite persistent individual and systemic racism, the Lower Albina neighborhood became home to a thriving community. It was an epicenter for arts and culture, Black-owned small businesses, schools, and faith institutions. That was until the construction of Interstate 5, the Memorial Coliseum, Legacy Emanuel hospital and a host of other anti-Black policies, under the guise of urban renewal, destroyed homes, uprooted businesses, and displaced thousands of residents. Now, more than half a century later, an effort to restore community and revitalize Lower Albina has taken root. An organization called Albina Vision Trust (AVT) has steadily built support for a plan to redevelop 94 acres in the heart of our city. By intentionally building housing, community centers, commercial boulevards, and open spaces, AVT seeks to reclaim both land and legacy for a community that was tragically displaced a generation ago. This effort aims to lift people out of poverty, put them on a path to prosperity, and reflects our highest aspirations as a city: to be a place for all. For years, I’ve done what I can to mobilize local, state, and federal support for AVT’s work. As the trillion-dollar federal infrastructure package moved through Congress in 2021, I fought hard to include a provision that funnels billions of dollars into reconnecting communities torn apart by antiquated infrastructure projects. I could think of no better project in America than Lower Albina. That’s why I encouraged Oregon’s governor to recognize this once in a generation opportunity. So far we’ve secured a $800,000 federal grant for early-stage planning and a $1 million grant to establish a land bank. But that’s just the beginning. Last spring, I brought U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to Portland to learn about Lower Albina and make the case for even more federal investment.  While federal dollars are important, this effort requires a commitment from every level of government. Right now, Portland Public Schools (PPS) is looking to relocate their administrative building, which currently occupies more than 10 acres in Lower Albina. AVT has proposed a cost-neutral solution that would move the PPS headquarters downtown and clear the way for site redevelopment. I have urged the school board to embrace AVT’s proposal and encourage others to do the same. Redeveloping the site into more than a thousand units of affordable housing will help ensure permanent, equitable and accessible homes for Black and under-represented Portlanders in the economic heart of our city.  Through these types of partnerships, Lower Albina can be a national model for how we center restorative justice in community redevelopment. There is no question that much work remains to meaningfully atone for Portland’s racist history; a history that continues to shape our present. On the first day of Black History Month, I encourage us all to do our part. This work is a moral imperative. It can begin to flourish in Lower Albina.