Financial aid expected for Portland Mercado renovation

Prosper Portland ’s board is poised to approve a $750,000 grant to help rehabilitate Portland Mercado .

The venue’s building, in Southeast Portland’s Foster-Powell neighborhood, suffered heavy damage in a Jan. 3 fire that started in a bar. The building, which housed a collection of Latin food businesses, remains closed. Several food carts have reopened in the adjacent parking lot.

Portland Mercado sits at the intersection of Southeast 72nd Avenue and Foster Road and is operated by Hacienda Community Development Corp. , an affordable housing developer that also offers a variety of community programs.

The renovation of the building is estimated to cost $1.96 million. The costs exceeding the grant amount are expected to be covered by insurance and fundraising, according to a Prosper Portland report.

The proposed improvements include repairing the bar and adjacent commercial spaces, adding exterior balcony seating, including rain and sun canopies, to exterior areas and enhancing the property’s overall usability.

Prosper Portland’s board is scheduled to consider the grant at a meeting this afternoon. Funds would come from the Lents Town Center tax increment financing district.

“We believe this investment reinforces our commitment to Portland’s small business community and further strengthens our partnership with Hacienda CDC,” Prosper Portland interim Executive Director Shea Flaherty Betin stated in an email Tuesday. “We look forward to the Mercado once again serving as a resource for entrepreneurs, a hub of Latine culture in Portland and a national model for neighborhood asset building.”

Hacienda CDC has raised more than $200,000 of its fundraising goal of $303,910. (Donations can be made at portlandmercado.org/rebuild ).

Prosper Portland has backed the project from the beginning. The agency purchased the property formerly a used car lot in 2011. The next year, Prosper Portland provided Hacienda CDC with a grant to conduct a market study. Hacienda CDC, through a subsidiary, leases the property from Prosper Portland.

Prosper Portland’s staff “fielded numerous inquiries from the public and elected leadership about the status and importance of the Portland Mercado,” according to a staff report.

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