USA Properties and Northwest Housing Alternatives partner on Terracina Vista in Gresham, Ore.

The 92-apartment community is along a MAX light-rail line and will offer a community room, three-bedroom units and inside bike storage

USA Properties Fund, one of the fastest-growing and leading affordable developer-manager-owners in the West, and Northwest Housing Alternatives are partnering on Terracina Vista, a much-needed affordable apartment community in Gresham along a MAX light-rail line and close to shopping centers, schools, health providers and two freeways.

Construction on Terracina Vista – located at 16519 E. Burnside Street, about 10 miles from downtown Portland – will start in the next few weeks and should be completed in summer 2025. The 92-apartment community will include a community room, computer workstations and inside bike storage, a popular feature in the bike-friendly Portland region.

The City of Gresham, Oregon Housing and Community Services, and Oregon Metro are subsidy lenders on Terracina Vista.

“We’re encouraged by this collaboration and the opportunity to provide much-needed affordable housing options to our community,” said Gresham Mayor Travis Stovall. “Housing for all is one of Gresham’s strategic plan priorities, and projects like this bring us closer to that vision.“

WNC & Associates is the tax credit investor on Terracina Vista. The construction lender is Capital One and the permanent lender is Citi Community Capital.

Second affordable apartment community in Oregon for USA Properties

The $43 million development is the second in Oregon for USA Properties Fund, which has more than 90 affordable and market-rate apartment communities in California and Nevada. The company and partner Northwest Housing recently completed and has started leasing The Canopy Apartments at Powell, a 169-apartment community in nearby east Portland.

The state’s far-reaching and forward-looking efforts to address the critical shortage of affordable housing, including through legislation and local bond measures passed by voters in recent years, attracted USA Properties to Oregon, said company President Geoff Brown.

“Oregon has been working hard on developing more affordable housing and ensuring lower-income residents have a quality, safe place to call home,” said Brown, who knows the Portland area well, earning a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Willamette University in Salem. “In a short time, we have already developed strong relationships in the region and enjoy working with Northwest Housing Alternatives and Oregon Housing and Community Services.”

Geoff Brown portrait
USA Properties Fund President Geoff Brown

‘One more step forward in addressing the critical housing crisis in the Portland metro region’

A public-private partnership is critical for Terracina Vista, located in the Rockwood-West Gresham Urban Renewal Plan. The urban renewal plan is an effort to boost the economy, improve job opportunities, provide more affordable housing and revive the Rockwood neighborhood.

“Northwest Housing Alternatives is committed to increasing access to safe, stable and affordable housing,” said Trell Anderson, Executive Director of Northwest Housing Alternatives. “Our investment in Terracina Vista is one more step forward in addressing the critical housing crisis in the Portland metro region and helping some of our most vulnerable community members. Affordable housing serves as the foundation for building a better future, from improving health to the overall well-being of residents.”

Terracina Vista 3 | USA Properties Fund, Inc.
Terracina Vista will include a community room, computer workstations and inside bike storage, a popular feature in the bike-friendly Portland region.

Terracina Vista will provide much-needed affordable housing for low-income residents in the Portland area, where half of households that rent are considered “cost-burdened,” spending at least 30% of their income on housing, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. More than one of every four (27%) households that rent spend at least half of their income on housing.

Andrea Bell | USA Properties Fund, Inc.
Oregon Housing and Community Services Director Andrea Bell

“The need for affordable housing across the state is one of the most pressing issues many Oregonians are facing day in and day out,” said Oregon Housing and Community Services Director Andrea Bell. “Incomes have not kept up or adjusted for inflation. Our collective mandate is to continue to come together and prioritize the creation of housing developments like Terracina Vista.”

Terracina Vista is for residents earning less than 60% of the area’s median income – about $67,680 per year for a family of four. Rents will be announced closer to the completion of Terracina Vista, but will be hundreds of dollars less than nearby market-rate apartment communities.

Three-bedroom units offer more space for families

Just as important as the affordable housing are the size of the units, housing officials say. Almost half of the apartments in Terracina Vista will have three bedrooms, helping meet an often-overlooked and underserved group of renters – families.

“We are committed to meeting the housing needs of all residents, whether they are a growing family or retirees living on a fixed income,” said Brown of USA Properties. “As much as we are building apartment communities, we are also developing a community where people from various backgrounds will share experiences, enjoy time together and support each other.”

Terracina Vista will feature a community room, where residents can connect and get together. Other amenities will include elevators and laundry facilities in the four-story building.

Apartments will include energy-efficient appliances and lighting, and low-flow faucets, showers and toilets.

USA Properties will continue to look at other possible projects in the Portland area, which needs an estimated 58,600 more homes to meet the current demand for housing – the 19th-largest deficit in the U.S., according to Just For Growth.

“Terracina Vista is another important step in a very long journey,” Brown said. “Every home that becomes available opens the door for another opportunity for residents.”

Terracina Vista Rendering New 2 | USA Properties Fund, Inc.

USA Properties expands into Oregon with The Canopy Apartments in Portland

Partnership with Northwest Housing Alternatives and Oregon Housing and Community Services starts construction on apartment community

USA Properties Fund, one of the fastest-growing and leading affordable developer-owner-managers in the West, Northwest Housing Alternatives and Oregon Housing and Community Services are partnering on The Canopy Apartments at Powell, a much-needed affordable apartment community close to public transportation, freeways, schools and several shopping centers in east Portland.

Construction on The Canopy Apartments at Powell – located at 12439 SE Powell Blvd., about 12 miles east of downtown Portland – has started and should be completed in late 2023. The 169-apartment community will have numerous amenities, including a bike room, a courtyard with a tot lot, a dog wash and a donation pantry, allowing residents to share food resources.

The $63 million development is the first in Oregon for USA Properties Fund, which has more than 90 affordable and market-rate apartment communities in California and Nevada.

Geoffrey Brown portrait

Aggressive efforts to address affordable housing, through legislation and the passing of a bond measure by voters in recent years, have “made it more realistic to develop affordable housing” in Oregon, said USA Properties President Geoff Brown,

“We’ve been looking at expanding to Portland for a while, and The Canopy Apartments is a good fit and a great project to enter the market,” said Brown, who knows the region well, earning a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Willamette University in Salem. “We appreciate the relationships that we have developed and enjoy working with Northwest Housing and OHCS. They are great people who understand affordable housing.”

‘SAFE, STABLE AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR OREGON FAMILIES’

The public-private partnership – including $15.2 million from OHCS’ Local Innovation and Fast Track (LIFT) Housing Program – was critical in taking the apartment community from the drawing board to the 3.8-acre parcel, said Darryl Briley, a Portland-area development consultant working on the project.

Andrea Bell | USA Properties Fund, Inc.

“Increasing access to safe, stable and affordable housing for Oregon families is a continued commitment of OHCS,” said OHCS Executive Director Andrea Bell. “Housing is a critical social determinant of health because it is a platform for health, well-being and community. Financing multifamily affordable housing like The Canopy Apartments at Powell is a representation of our ambitious long-term strategy to respond to the housing crisis impacting the most vulnerable communities in Oregon. It is about centering humanity.”

OHCS has funded almost 19,000 affordable rental homes during the first three years of its Housing Plan, and is on pace to easily exceed the goal of 25,000 over five years.

The Portland Housing Bureau has also played a major role in The Canopy Apartments at Powell, waiving millions of dollars in development fees. The city has issued a State of Emergency on Housing and Homelessness, which greatly expedites the permitting process.

SMALLER RENTS, LARGER APARTMENTS

The Canopy Apartments at Powell will provide much-needed affordable housing for residents in the Portland region, where almost half (46%) of households that rent are considered “cost-burdened,” spending at least 30% of their income on housing, according to The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

The Canopy Apartments at Powell is for residents earning less than 60% of the area’s median income – about $58,000 per year for a family of four. Rents will range from less than $1,100 per month for a one-bedroom apartment to just more than $1,500 for a three-bedroom unit.

Those rents are significantly less than nearby market-rate apartments in Portland, according to industry tracker Zumper.

Almost as important as the affordable rents are the size of the units, said Destin Ferdun, Director of Real Estate Development for Northwest Housing Alternatives. About half of the apartments will be three-bedroom units, helping meet an often-overlooked and underserved population in the Portland region – families.

The Canopy Apartments at Powell has a “very cost-effective, efficient use of the space,” Ferdun said.

LONG LIST OF AMENITIES, LESS IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT

The modern contemporary-designed apartment community will have a three- and a four-story building. Amenities will include elevators, laundry facilities on each floor, and ample on-site parking with an electric vehicle charging station.

Apartments will include electric heating; laminate flooring; energy-efficient appliances and lighting; and low-flow faucets, showers and toilets. Apartments can also accommodate tenant-owned air conditioning units, if necessary.

USA Properties, which embraced green-building practices more than a decade ago, has registered with Earth Advantage and expects to receive a Platinum-level certification for the project. Numerous earth-friendly upgrades – including high-performance windows, the installation of a solar-panel system and a commitment to building with local materials – will help boost the performance of The Canopy Apartments at Powell by at least 26% compared to baseline permitted construction, said Eric Foley, Manager of the Multifamily Program for Earth Advantage.  

The Canopy Apartments is “very thoughtful in its design,” Briley said.

JP Morgan Chase and WNC are financial partners on the project. WALSH Construction Co. is the general contractor.

The Canopy Apartments at Powell could be the first of several projects in the Portland region for Roseville, Calif.-based USA Properties.

“Oregon and the Portland community are committed to addressing the overwhelming need for more affordable housing,” Brown said. “And we’re looking forward to finding projects that make sense for us and our partners, and being part of the solution that helps ease the critical shortage of affordable housing in the region.”