Portland gets money for housing crisis but may not be able to accept it
A philanthropic organization announced Thursday that Portland will receive hundreds of thousands of dollars to tackle its pervasive housing crisis.
But city officials say they never applied for the funding. They can’t even use it.
Bloomberg Philanthropies selected Portland as one of 15 cities to test whether housing reforms that have worked in other parts of the country can have the same impact locally, the group announced Thursday.
Using successful models from California, Texas and Georgia, the selected cities will receive between $450,000 and $750,000 as well as expert support to tackle permitting times, accessory dwelling unit approvals and a backlog of stalled affordable housing projects.
Bloomberg did not say which initiative Portland will take on or how much money it will receive.
Mayor Mark Dion was perplexed by Portland’s inclusion in the list. Bloomberg contacted him about the opportunity a few weeks ago, he said, and he ran the possibility by staff, but they ultimately determined it wasn’t a good fit.
Advertisement
The money, which is largely for staff, comes with strict criteria, Dion said, and Portland has already undertaken many of the initiatives the organization is trying to pilot.
Related
Is Portland throwing away an opportunity (zone)?
For example, Austin, Texaslegalized up to three homes on most single-family lots and shrank minimum lot sizes to encourage more accessory dwelling units. Permits nearly quadrupled, according to Bloomberg.
But Maine already implemented similar zoning mandates statewide in 2022, and next year, another law will go into effect that further loosens zoning laws.
In San Diego, officials moved permit reviews online and set a 30-day limit on approvals. The number of homes cleared for construction jumped 82% in one year, the most in 20 years.
Portland’s permitting process is already digitized, Dion said.
In Atlanta, the mayor pulled every agency involved in housing into a Housing Strike Force, which got more than 2,000 stalled affordable homes moving again, according to Bloomberg.
Advertisement
Portland is already working on that issue, too.
Last year, the city launched a Social Housing Task Force to explore how to establish middle-income housing that would be owned, operated and managed by the city. And the City Council is currently reviewing potential changes to its inclusionary zoning policy, which developers have criticized as the main barrier to completing housing projects in Portland.
Dion said he’d love to be able to accept the money, but Portland doesn’t have a way to use it.
“Staff fully considered whether there was a match …. It’s not a match right now,” he said.
Dion said as much to Bloomberg officials last week and said that Luke McGowan, who works on the organization’s Government Innovation team told him Portland was included because it’s still considered “eligible.”
If the city develops an initiative in line with Bloomberg’s criteria, it can still move forward.
Advertisement
“But at this time we’re not there,” Dion said. “We feel we’re in a good position” with permitting and ADUS.
Bloomberg Philanthropies did not immediately respond to an email seeking clarification.
Portland, which has a population of about 70,000, was by far the smallest city on the list and is one of only two in New England.
Other selected cities include Miami, Florida; Albuquerque New Mexico; San Jose, California; Omaha Nebraska; Providence, Rhode Island, and Nashville, Tennessee.
Copy the Story Link
Hannah is the housing reporter at the Portland Press Herald, covering all aspects of Maine’s housing crisis - real estate and development, home ownership and rental issues and the lack of both affordability. More by Hannah LaClaire
