Portland/New Columbia

A group of community-based organizations and governmental agencies is using the Viable Futures Toolkit perspectives to generate ideas and strategies for enhancing interaction among the generations and making a North Portland neighborhood an optimal place for all ages to live.

Although New Columbia is fairly new, it is nationally-recognized as an innovative mixed-income and mixed-use housing development. Anchored by a federal HOPE VI revitalization grant for public housing, it was also funded through a wide array of other public and private sources. Two mixed-use buildings in the community are the first HOPE VI-funded projects to earn Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) ratings from the U.S. Green Building Council.

In recent months, New Columbia has received two prestigious national awards. The U.S. Department of Education Richard Riley Award recognized New Columbia’s Rosa Parks School as the school that best exemplifies the growing national trend of building schools as center of community.  And – New Columbia received the top 2007 EPA Award for Smart Growth Achievement. (For more information, see the Community and Economic Development and Housing Issue Update sections.)

New Columbia encapsulates many of the underlying principles and features promoted in the toolkit:

• multi-generational and racially diverse residents

• environmentally sound/green building features and open spaces

• design that encourages interaction among residents

• pedestrian and bike friendly streets; easy access to public transportation

• on-site senior and youth facilities and schools

• lifelong learning center

• support for minority-owned, women-owned and emerging small businesses

• public art 

Photo courtesy of New Columbia/
Housing Authority of Portland.

Benefits

The strength of this ongoing initiative is an inclusive focus that involves residents and partner organizations. The people who live in the community are involved in program development and see a direct benefit. Partners are seeing that working together on one project can get results for a number of organizations. Some key reasons partners remain engaged are: 1) the work at New Columbia helps them further their own organizational goals; 2) the advantages of working collaboratively with other organizations, such as less duplication of efforts and increased visibility in the community (recognition in the New Columbia newsletter); and 3) the potential to raise funding for their organizations to support work at New Columbia.   

A variety of activities are occurring in key focus areas.  Here are some highlights: 

Improving Health and Nutrition

• A 4,000 square foot community garden, Seeds of Harmony, serves as an intergenerational food growing garden for New Columbia residents and surrounding neighbors.

Keeping New Columbia Green, Healthy and Vibrant

• New Columbia has kicked off an Adopt a Bioswale Campaign, where residents and families can sign up to help keep their bioswale "survive and thrive." They agree to watch for debris and litter, bicycle or foot traffic in/through the bioswale, and damage to plants. New Columbia has 101 bioswales on its property and just applied for a grant to receive funding to promote educational awareness and activities around the bioswales.

Enhancing Intergenerational and Multi-Cultural Experience

•     Over 20 Pocket Park events will be held this year, more than doubling from last year. The purpose is to bring local agencies to New Columbia to share resources and support for the community. The events are for people of all ages and include activities such as: puppet shows; airbrushing tee shirts; sharing musical talent and folk dance. There are educational aspects to many of the events -- with some hosts coming from Red Cross to teach about babysitting and disaster preparation, and the Center for Family Success providing information on obtaining a GED, or awareness around positive parenting techniques.  

•      K-Ching! (Kids Creating Harmony in Neighborhood Growth) -- is the Youth Employment Program – one for 12-15 year olds and one for 16-18 year olds, which has Urban League involvement.  Youth attend orientations and interviews, and are placed at locations around New Columbia -- the Boys and Girls Club, Trenton Terrace (the senior housing complex) and the University Park Community Center. 

• ·   Youth Academy is an 8 week program that teaches young people ages 12-17 leadership skills, how to make positive choices, goal setting, and communicating with respect and honesty.  

• ·    New Columbia’s main park hosted the McCoy Park Summer Concert Series.  Many of the attendees come from outside of the area to see the positive events in the park. Some of the musicians are nationally known and range from jazz singers, to percussionists, to Latin-infused rock.

Community Safety

·    New Columbia worked with community partners and residents to put together a large National Night Out event. The event promoted the ideals of a safe and strong community and to create solidarity by joining together to prevent crime. Community Builders, apartment complex managers, Portland Parks and Recreation Staff and the Office of Neighborhood Involvement jointly put this event together.

Sustaining Efforts at New Columbia  

·    New Columbia now has 6 new Resident Community Builders.  These individuals all live at New Columbia, and include youth and older adults.  They are working to build a strong community and are involved in various projects, including youth programs, helping out at the Trenton Place senior residence, the Boys and Girls Club, leading the Saturday litter patrol, assisting with newsletter distribution and participating on event committees. 

·   The Housing Authority of Portland is working with collaboratively with partner organizations to submit funding proposals to local foundations that will continue initiatives at New Columbia.

Contacts: Molly Gray: mollyg@hapdx.org

Websites:
www.newcolumbia.org
http://multnomah.or.networkofcare.org/aging/home/index.cfm

Photo courtesy of New Columbia/
Housing Authority of Portland.