Growing Together to Expand Opportunity for All in the Portland Region

Growing Together to Expand Opportunity
for All
in the Portland Region
Making the most of the Sustainable Communities
Initiative
john a. powell
Executive Director, Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and
Ethnicity
Williams Chair in Civil Rights & Civil Liberties,
Moritz College of Law
Metro
Portland, OR
August 3, 2010

Introduction
How do you build livable, sustainable communities that work
for, and are inclusive of, everyone?

The Portland Way
A leader in regional, sustainable development

40 years of progressive land use
planning

Quality of Life in region

Source: Public Opinion Research Survey, DHM Inc.2009.

HUD Livability Principles
(1) Provide More Transportation Choices. Develop safe, reliable, and economical
transportation choices to decrease household transportation costs, reduce our Nation’s
dependence on foreign oil, improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and promote
public health.
(2) Promote equitable, affordable housing. Expand location - and energy-efficient housing
choices for people of all ages, incomes, races, and ethnicities to increase mobility, improve access
to jobs, expand educational opportunities, and lower the combined cost of housing and
transportation.
(3) Enhance Economic Competitiveness. Improve economic competitiveness through reliable
and timely access to employment centers, educational opportunities, services, and other basic
needs of workers, as well as expanded business access to markets.
(4) Support Existing Communities. Target federal funding toward existing communities—
through strategies like transit-oriented, mixed-use development, and land recycling—to increase
community revitalization and the efficiency of public works investments and to safeguard rural
landscapes.
(5) Coordinate Policies and Leverage Investment. Align federal policies and funding to
remove barriers to collaboration, leverage funding, and increase the accountability and
effectiveness of all levels of government to plan for future growth, including making smart energy
choices, such as locally generated renewable energy.
(6) Value Communities and Neighborhoods. Enhance the unique characteristics of all
communities by investing in healthy, safe, and walk able neighborhoods—rural, urban, or
suburban.

HUD Mandatory Outcomes
(1) Creation of regional transportation, housing, water, and air quality plans that are
deeply aligned and tied to local comprehensive land use and capital investment
plans.
(2) Aligned federal planning and investment resources that mirror the local and
regional strategies for achieving sustainable communities.
(3) Increased participation and decision-making in developing and implementing a
long range vision for the region by populations traditionally marginalized in public
planning processes.
(4) Reduced social and economic disparities for the low-income, minority
communities, and other disadvantaged populations within the target region.
(5) Decrease in per capita VMT and transportation-related emissions for the region.
(6) Decrease in overall combined housing and transportation costs per household.
(7) Increase in the share of residential and commercial construction on underutilized
infill development sites that encourage revitalization, while minimizing
displacement in neighborhoods with significant disadvantaged populations.
(8) Increased proportion of low and very low-income households within a 30-minute
transit commute of major employment centers.

Question
What are the strategies and activities needed to reach these
outcomes?

Understanding Opportunity
Understanding the geography of opportunity can make our
regional investments more effective.

Opportunity Matters….
 “Opportunity” is a situation or condition that places individuals in
a position to be more likely to succeed or excel.
 Opportunity structures are critical to opening pathways to
success:
 High-quality education
 Healthy and safe environment
 Stable housing
 Sustainable employment
 Political empowerment
 Outlets for wealth-building
 Positive social networks

How does Portland compare to the
nation?
Portland city, OR USA
2006-2008 2006-2008
Select characteristics 2000 ACS 2000 ACS
Median HH Income
(1999) $40,146 $48,993 $41,994 $52,175

% population 25+, HS
Graduate or Higher 85.7 89.2 80.4 84.5
% Population 25+,
Bachelors Degree or
Higher 32.6 39.6 24.4 27.4

Families Below Poverty 8.5 10.5 9.2 9.6

Median value SF Home $154,900 $293,300 $119,600 $192,400
Source: Census data

Collective Concerns for the Region
 Housing Affordability
 Educational Attainment
 Poverty
 Recession & Unemployment

Housing: Affordability
Housing affordability is a region-
wide issue:
• Declining affordability of SF
homes
• By 2005, median household
income was less than 1/3 of
housing price
• In 2008 in Multnomah County,
• 52% of renters and 43% of
owners paid more than 30%
on housing
• Compared to 50% of
renters and 37.5% of
owners nationally
Source: Coalition of Communities of Color and Portland State University. “Communities of Color in Multnomah County:An Unsettling Profile.” 2010
Figure c/o Coalition for a Livable Future, Regional Equity Atlas.

Housing + Transportation,
Housing Costs, % income % income

Yellow: Less than 30% Yellow: Less than 45%
Blue: 30% and Greater Blue: 45% and Greater
Source: Center for Neighborhood Technology. 2010 http://htaindex.cnt.org/mapping_tool.php#region=portland&theme_menu=0

Portland - Central city

Education Percent of Persons 25+ by
Highest Educational
Vancouver,
OR - WA
of:
Portland
Suburbs
Attainment PMSA city, OR
When compared to 1970 37.6 39.6 36.3
the region and 1980 22.0 24.2 20.6
Did not
suburbs: Graduate HS 1990 15.7 17.1 14.8
•Portland has higher 2000 12.8 14.3 11.9
percent of people 1970 35.4 33.4 36.7
who did not graduate 1980 36.4 32.2 38.3
HS Graduate
HS, 1990 26.9 24.9 27.6
• and a higher 2000 23.8 22.2 24.3
percent of people Some
1970 14.5 14.6 14.3
with advanced/ College or 1980 22.1 21.5 22.4
college degrees Associate 1990 34.2 32.0 35.1
Degree
2000 34.5 30.8 35.9
1970 12.5 12.4 12.7
College
Graduate or 1980 19.6 22.1 18.7
Advanced 1990 23.3 25.9 22.5
Degree
Source: SOCDS Census data 200 28.8 32.6 27.9

Increasing poverty in the region and Portland
Portland - Vancouver, Central city of:
Poverty Rate Suburbs**
OR - WA PMSA Portland city, OR
(Percent)
1969 9.7 12.6 8.0
1979 9.0 13.0 7.2
1989 9.9 14.5 7.6

1993 Estimated* 11.2 15.9 8.9

1995 Estimated* 9.9 14.5 7.8

1997 Estimated* 9.2 12.6 7.8

1998 Estimated* 9.4 12.8 8.1

1999 9.5 13.1 7.6

2003 Estimated* 10.4 13.4 8.8

Source: SOCDS Census data
*Estimated poverty rates for 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, and 2003 are derived from the Census Bureau's Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates.
** Suburb data are defined as the total for the Portland-Vancouver, OR-WA PMSA less the sum of data for these cities:
Portland city, OR ; Vancouver city, WA ;

Effects of the Recession…
Portland -
Vancouver -
Unemployment City of: Portland city, OR Suburbs
Beaverton, OR
Rate (%)
-WA MSA
Average Annual
2000
4.4 4.7 4.3
Average Annual
2005
5.9 6.1 6.0
Average Annual
2006
5.0 5.2 5.1
Average Annual
2007
4.8 4.9 4.9
Average Annual
2008
5.9 5.8 6.1
Average Annual
2009
10.6 10.4 11.2

Source: SOCDS Census data

But, opportunity is also….

Racialized… Spatialized… Globalized…
• In 1960, African- • marginalized people of • Economic
American families in color and the very poor
poverty were 3.8 times globalization
have been spatially
more likely to be isolated from
concentrated in high- opportunity via • Climate change
poverty neighborhoods reservations, Jim Crow,
than poor whites. Appalachian
mountains, ghettos, • the Credit and
• In 2000, they were 7.3 barrios, and the Foreclosure crisis
times more likely. culture of
incarceration.

Neighborhoods Matter…
 Neighborhoods are critical to
understanding access to opportunity
 For example, research shows that living in
a neighborhood of concentrated
disadvantage is equivalent to missing a
full year of school (Sampson 2007)
 Does your neighborhood provide pathways to
opportunity and success?
 Safe environment, good schools, positive peers
and role models, employment, accessible
transportation options to amenities and jobs
 Or does your neighborhood present you with
barriers to opportunity and success
 Unsafe environment, failing schools, poor peers
and role models, no employment

Our opportunity context matters

Some people ride the “Up” Others have to run up the
escalator to reach “Down” escalator to get there
opportunity

The Cumulative Impacts of Spatial, Racial and
Opportunity Segregation

Segregation impacts a number of life-opportunities
Impacts on Health
School Segregation
Impacts on Educational Achievement

Exposure to crime; arrest

Transportation limitations and other
inequitable public services

Neighborhood Job segregation
Segregation
Racial stigma, other
psychological impacts
Impacts on community power and
individual assets

Adapted from figure by Barbara Reskin at: http://faculty.washington.edu/reskin/

Why do some people have access to the
“good life” while others do not?

It’s more than a matter of choice….

Historic Government Role
 A series of federal policies have contributed to the disparities we
see today
 School Policy
 Suburbanization & Homeownership
 Urban Renewal
 Public Housing
 Transportation

2
2

Today,
Institutions continue to
support, not dismantle, the
status quo. This is why we
continue to see racially
inequitable outcomes even if
there is good intent behind
policies, or an absence of
racist actors. (i.e. structural
racialization)

Example: Redline Mapping and
Analysis
How historic redlining practices helped shape today’s opportunity
landscape

A snapshot of opportunity in Portland
today

A snapshot of opportunity in Portland
today, contd.

Historic Government Policies Enforcing Inequity:
The FHA and Redlining

“If a neighborhood is to retain stability, it is
necessary that properties shall continue to
be occupied by the same social and racial
classes. A change in social or racial
occupancy generally contributes to
instability and a decline in values.”

–Excerpt from the 1947 FHA
underwriting manual

27

How Have Discriminatory Systems Influenced
Portland today?

From
Redlining…

Original Portland 1938 Redlining Map

Historic Redlining Practices and Access to Opportunity in 2010

High Interest Rate Loans as Share of Home Purchase
Loans by Race/Ethnicity and Income (2008)
Low- Middle- Upper
Income Income Income
Hispanic 6.8% 7.0% 3.5%

Non-Hispanic White 5.0% 3.2% 3.0% …to Reverse
Non-Hispanic Black 1.8% 3.7% 6.2%
Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac.
Islander 2.1% 1.8% n/a
Redlining…
High Interest Rate Loans as Share of Home Purchase
Loans by Race/Ethnicity (2008)
Metro Area
Hispanic 5.9%
Non-Hispanic White 3.5%
Non-Hispanic Black 4.3%
Non-Hispanic American Indian 2.0%
Non-Hispanic Asian/Pac. Islander 1.9%
Source: http://diversitydata.sph.harvard.edu/Data/Profiles/Show.aspx?loc=1092

1938 Redlining and Subprime Lending

…To Gentrification, a new form of exclusion
From 1990 to 1999, the
average home price in
the Portland region rose
97% from $96,000 to
$188,600. In some
previously redlined
areas prices increased
150 or 200% in five
years.

Source: K. Gibson and C. Abbott. “City Profile: Portland, Oregon.” Cities Vol.19, No.6 December 2002. Photos c/o William
Yardley. “Racial Shift in a Progressive City Spurs Talks” The NewYork Times, May 29, 2008

Displacement or tenure change?
The blues
represent
decreases in
SF homes for
rent. What is
unclear is
whether these
decreases
represent
displacement,
or tenure
changes. Some
of the darkest
blue areas
especially may
indicate
displacement.
Source: Coalition for a Livable Future, Regional Equity Atlas.

Key Opportunity Areas
 There are challenges that are burdening everyone in the
community and region, but there are also uneven effects
across groups, especially across the following domains:
 Education
 School poverty
 Achievement gaps
 Proficiency gaps
 Housing
 Affordability
 Fair credit
 Homeownership and wealth
 Economic
 Income disparities

Education: School poverty
 The percentage of students in the region on FRL grew from
27.8% in 1999 to 35% in 2003.

The poverty of a school, more than the poverty of the individual,
determines students’ educational outcomes
The 1966 Coleman Report concluded that concentrated poverty
inevitably depresses achievement on a school-wide and a
district-wide basis—the effects are not contained within school
walls.

Data from the Regional Equity Atlas. The Coalition for a Livable Future. Research from Poverty and Race Research Action Council Annotated
Bibliography:The Impact of School-Based Poverty Concentration on Academic Achievement and Student Outcomes.

School poverty contd.
 In 1999, 86 schools had >50% of students on FRL; in 2003, this
increased to 133 schools
The “tipping point” is the threshold at which problems spiral beyond the
control of the school. Most experts place that point at 50%. At this point,
all students’ prospects are depressed

 The number of schools where 75.1-100% of students were on
FRL doubled between 1999 and 2003 (from 15 to 30)
Once the concentration of poverty in a district reaches 60% or above, the
district can no longer rely on its own internal efforts to improve outcomes

Data from the Regional Equity Atlas. The Coalition for a Livable Future. Research from Poverty and Race Research Action Council Annotated
Bibliography:The Impact of School-Based Poverty Concentration on Academic Achievement and Student Outcomes.

Education: Attainment Gaps
Graduation Rates
2009 for 3 largest
school districts in
Multnomah
County:
• PPS: 52%
• Reynolds: 51%
• David Douglas:
62%


Education:
Proficiency
Gaps
• Everyone’s
proficiency declines
over time, but
students of color fare
much worse and
persistent
achievement gap;

• Is a 59% math
proficiency rate OK
for tenth graders? We
know a 38% is not.

•What’s our goal?


Housing: Affordability

• In 2000, nearly 20% of renters spent more than 50% of income
on rent.
• One study found that for families with children paying more
than 50% of their income on rent, they spent 30% less on food,
50% less on clothing, and 70% less on healthcare. Partnership for America’s
Economic Success, 2010.“The Hidden Costs of the Housing Crisis: The Impact of Housing on Young Children’s Odds of
Success.”


Housing: Fair Credit
Predatory subprime lending had little to do with sustainable
homeownership for families, and more to do with equity
stripping.

• Black borrowers were also 1.6-2.2 times more likely to
refinance through subprime lender, and Latinos were 2.7-3.4
times more likely, than similarly-situated white borrowers.
(Regional Equity Atlas)

Source: Table from Coalition of Communities of Color and Portland State University. “Communities of Color in Multnomah County:An Unsettling Profile.” 2010

Housing: Homeownership and Wealth

• Minority homeownership gap has been increasing over time
• In Clark, Multnomah, and Washington counties, homeownership
rates for people of color lag not only whites, but national rates for
the same racial groups.

Disparities in homeownership translate into disparities in wealth.
• Homeowners of color are more reliant than white households on housing for
wealth, with 95% of wealth for Black households, and 96% of wealth for
Hispanic households derived from their primary residence, compared to 70%
of white wealth. (http://sociology.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/wealth.html)

Economic: Income Disparities
White
families
are
making
about
1.1
times
that of
families
White of color
families
are
making
4.6 times
that of
families
of color


Economic: Income Disparities contd.
This is a
tenfold
increase
Everyone
in
is worse
disparity
off, but
since
white
1995;
families
white
still
families’
making 7
incomes
times are 2.2
that of times
families of that of
color families
of color


A Closer Look…
1979 2007

White Families Families of Color White Families Families of Color

Decile 1 $11,025 $2,400 $5,000 $700

Decile 5 $55,799 $35,998 $55,000 $32,000

Decile 10 $137,409 $122,502 $260,000 $116,500

What’s our
In Decile 1: goal? How do
White families experienced a 55% decrease in income make sure all
Families of Color experienced a 71% decrease families are
In Decile 5 (middle class): sharing in
region’s
White families income essentially remained unchanged, declining by 1.4%
prosperity?
Families of Color experienced a 11% decrease

How do we change this geography?
Change our systems and structures

Growing Together
“Equitable regionalism affirms the need for every
community to have a voice in the resource
development and future of the region. It builds
and sustains region-wide, collaborative institutions
with inclusive representation and a common goal:
improving the health of the whole and expanding
opportunity for all people and communities across
the region. Equitable regionalism requires
comprehensive and strategic investment in people
and neighborhoods.”
“Regionalism: Growing Together to Expand Opportunity for All.” 2007. Summary report, pp. 1-2.

Strategies for Growing Together
Think in new ways
Talk in new ways
Act in new ways

Thinking in New Ways:
Transformative Thinking
 transformative thinking to combat structural racialization;
we need to find new approaches.

 personal and social responsibility are important: we
should maintain them in our advocacy and analysis

 approaches should consider the structures and systems
that are creating and perpetuating these disparities and
work to reform them for lasting change.

51

Talking in New Ways
I. How do we talk about race?
II. Targeted universalism—a new frame for dialogue (beyond
disparities)

I. How to Talk about Race
 Speak on structures and systems rather than explicit individual
action/reaction

 Speak on the subconscious—the implicit bias that is stored
within the mind

 Speak on relationships—build collaborations and engage in real
discussion

53

II. Targeted universalism as
communication strategy

 Moves beyond the disparities frame

 Focuses on the universal goals shared by all the
communities while being sensitive to the targeted
strategies that are responsive to the situation of
marginalized communities

Acting in New Ways
I. Engagement and inclusion
II. Targeted universalism as policy
III. Opening access through people, places, and linkages

I. Engagement and Inclusion
“That historically disadvantaged communities, especially communities of color
and those living in poverty have a voice and are represented in all decision
making to assure that the benefits and burdens of growth and change are
distributed equitably.”

“While this consortium of regional partners is initially designed to develop
the Housing Equity and Opportunity Strategy, the intent is to have the
consortium develop a governance structure to oversee the implementation of
regional housing and equity measures on an on-going basis.”

“Grant funding will be used to involve community-based organizations (as
well as local governments) in specific tasks and decision-making related to
the regional housing strategy with the objective of having increased
capacity and capability to engage in decision-making beyond the duration
of the grant.”
From Vision Statement and Declaration of Cooperation

II. Promote Universal Policies in Targeted
Ways
• There is no “one size fits all”
• “One vision, many paths”
• Process:
• What is the goal?
• How do we tailor
strategies to different
groups, who are
differently situated, to lift
them to that goal?

III. Opening Access
Kirwan’s Opportunity Communities Model

A Multi-faceted Approach:
Strategies for Connecting to Opportunity

The Sustainable Communities
Regional Planning Grant
Aligning your proposal with HUD

Considering people, places, and
linkages
Activities should:
 Affirmative further fair housing and promote affordable housing in high
opportunity areas (23)
 Promote greater transit supportive development (incorporating to the
degree possible the full range of housing to all ranges of family
incomes)…[provide] improved service for historically marginalized
populations and viable alternative to automobile ownership (24)
 Avoid adverse environmental impacts on neighborhoods through
careful planning and siting of housing and community facilities (25)
 Redress persistent environmental justice concerns in communities (25)
 Promote inclusion of underrepresented populations in economic
sectors…and training to support the full range of workforce and
worker needs in the region (26)

Discussion
 Defining universal goals and benchmarks
 Developing targeted strategies

“Applicants will be evaluated on their ability to identify the
outcomes they seek to achieve, the clarity with which they
articulate the elements of the Regional Plan for Sustainable
Development that will help achieve those outcomes, and the
specificity of the benchmarks that they establish to measure
progress toward a completed product that guides all of the
necessary work.”

www.KirwanInstitute.org

www.race-talk.org

KirwanInstitute
on:

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