Uploaded additional info

Please note the new Background Information tab where you can download a copy of the 2011 Portland Mercado Feasibility Study conducted by Portland State University‘s Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning student group Adelante Planning from January – June 2011.

You can also download the Market Study, just finished this month by Marketek, Inc. This study was funded by the Portland Development Commission‘s Development Opportunity Services program.

72nd and SE Foster site update! Senator Wyden is Visiting! As for our website please pardon our dust…

Last Friday the finishing touches were made on a Letter of Intent between the Portland Development Commission and Hacienda CDC for site control of the lot at southeast corner of SE 72nd and SE Foster.  At the Asamblea meeting on Monday John Jackley, Director of Business and Social Equity, was in attendance to share the good news and celebrate with the group on this milestone. We are incredibly thankful to the PDC for their collaboration and excited to move forward!

This includes beginning our outreach into the SE neighborhoods and business associations, particularly Mt. Scott-Arleta, Foster-Powell, Lents, Creston-Kenilworth, and Woodstock. We’ve also reached out to the Foster Area Business Association and the East Portland Chamber of Commerce.  We’ve already met with the Mt. Scott-Arleta land use and transportation neighborhood association subcommittee, and we will be conducting a broader presentation and overview of the project at the Mt. Scott-Arleta Neighborhood Association general meeting on June 6, 6:30 pm, at the Mt. Scott Community Center.  We will conduct a 20-minute presentation and have time for question and answer discussion afterwards – many thanks to the folks at Mt. Scott Arleta for coordinating this outreach with us!

In other news – at Monday’s monthly Asamblea meeting (pictured below) two more business plans were presented – Tres Hermanos Panaderia and Fernando and Elisabeth’s Restaurante Colombiana.  A full list of businesses currently in planning for the Mercado can be seen in a previous post.

Also discussed Monday night was the upcoming visit to Hacienda CDC this coming Saturday by U.S. Senator Wyden. Senator Wyden would like to meet with the members of the Portland Mercado. Nathan Teske and Ellen Wyoming met with Senator Wyden late last fall and discussed the Portland Mercado with him. He is now returning and will also sign a letter of support for the Mercado as a part of our current $800,000 grant application with the Federal Department of Health and Human Services.

Finally – you’ll notice the website is going through some changes as we re-vamp and get ready for our next phases of development. A few of the old pages have been taken down so that we can update information over the next couple weeks and provide answers to frequently asked questions and also have the studies and work conducted available for community review.  Please expect these items to crop up over the next few weeks as we move into the summer, and please pardon our dust.

Thanks to all our supporters again, if you’re not already subscribed to the blog – please do, and we look forward to keeping up the momentum with you!

Mt. Scott Arleta Subcommittee Meeting Presentation Tonight

We’ll be making a short presentation at the land-use and transportation subcommittee meeting of the Mt. Scott Arleta Neighborhood Association this evening at 7 pm.  We have also been invited to present at their General Meeting, June 6, at 6:30 pm. Please attend if you can to learn more about the project and movement towards building the Portland Mercado at SE 72nd and SE Foster Road.  We will be reaching out over the next few weeks to other neighborhood and business associations to connect with the wider community, so if you haven’t yet heard from us please drop us a line or expect to hear from us in the coming weeks.  Thank you for your support!

Tinkering Away

We’ve been quiet on the blog front but only because we’ve been so busy.  We’d love to share a few quick updates.

1. The Portland Mercado team has been working fast and furious on a federal grant application which could bring up to $800,000 in funding to the Portland Mercado project. Please cross your fingers for us! It is due June 5 and we are nose to the grindstone on this.

2. The team has been meeting with the Portland Development Commission for the past few weeks working on language for an agreement to gain site control at 72nd and SE Foster in the Lents Urban Renewal Area as a probable location for the Portland Mercado.  Please cross your fingers on this as well!

3. The team is reaching out to folks in the area, starting with Lents International Farmers Market folks, Rose CDC, SE Works, and the folks at the FoPo blog (who recently blogged about us) with more to come! If you’re a group in the neighborhood haven’t heard from us yet, Ellen will likely reach out to you soon.  Additionally, please drop us a line too to make sure we can connect with you (portlandmercado@gmail.com).

4. The Mercado entrepreneurs have all crafted draft business plans for their businesses and presented on them.

5. The Community Development Law Center has been working and is nearing completion of bylaws for the formation of the vendor cooperative for the Portland Mercado.

6. After the grant application is finished, the team plans to focus next on sending out an RFQ for developer and architect services to identify who will partner with Hacienda CDC in the development and construction of the Mercado.

7. We’re also on the lookout to connect with potential equity or angel investors on our project – please send us any folks you think might be interested in supporting our community economic development project to inspire, uplift and empower.

Expect a large variety of businesses at the Portland Mercado

Leonel presents his business plan for a nutritious snack stand

At the most recent meeting of the Asamblea, future Mercado vendors shared their business plans. Twenty-one community members participated in the exercise. They also brought proof of having opened a savings account. This account will be used to buy a share in the Mercado cooperative and will support the development of their respective businesses. Check out some of the businesses the Portland Mercado will offer.

• Leonel: Antojitos (Finger Food)
• Amalia: Tortillería (Tortilla shop)
• Luis: Sopas y sándwiches (Soups and sandwiches)
• Sabino y Reyna: Verdulería (Vegetable stand)
• Teresa: Comida Hondureña (Honduran food)
• Zoila: Comida Salvadoreña (Salvadorian food)
• Cyntia H: Tortas y licuados (Cakes and Mexican smoothies)
• Martha P: Cemitas (Cemitas, a type of food from Puebla, Mexico)
• Andres y Karen: Comida Colombiana (Colombian food)
• Maria y Meliton : Comida Yucateca (Mexican Yucatecan food)
• Silvio G: Carnicería (Butcher)
• Gustavo: Fruta picada (Chopped fruit)
• Corina: Regalos (Gifts)
• Antelma: Lavandería (Laundromat)
• Marcela: Estudio fotográfico (Photo studio)
• Monica: Pinatas y dulces para fiestas (Piñatas and sweets for parties)
• Claudia M: Joyería (Jewelry store)
• Alma F: Entretenimiento infantil (Child care)

 

Support microenterprise development with a $3.50 lunch purchase

Beginning in May, Hacienda Community Development Corporation (CDC) will publicly launch the new Latino Food Vendor Incubator project, a social enterprise supporting micro-business development for low-income Latinos. The Incubator project, popularly known as Micro Mercantes, has roots as an informal cooperative of Latino tamale vendors. A high demand for culturally specific training opportunities has led Hacienda CDC to restructure the program to serve more entrepreneurs.

Participants will now follow a structured three-year curriculum and culminate in the soft-launch of their own business. This model turns talented Latino chefs into business-savvy entrepreneurs and opens the program up to a stream of participants. To paraphrase, expect an abundance of delicious food vendors in the Portland Mercado’s food court. Good luck deciding on lunch.

Check below for the closest participating farmers market, and be on the look out for the soft-launch of catering sales on May 1. If you are interested in catering, please contact Caitlin Burke.

• Beginning Saturday, May 5, Inocencia and her brother José will serve tamales from a recipe out of Puebla. Find them in Hollywood Farmers Market (4420 Northeast Hancock Street, Portland, OR 97213).
• Beginning Sunday, May 6, Fernando and his wife Elizabeth will work the King Farmers Market (4815 Northeast 7th Ave) dishing out savory Colombian arepas.
• Beginning Saturday, June 2, find Paula at the St. Johns Farmers Market (N Lombard & N Philadelphia) serving a variety of tamales oaxaqueñas.
• Beginning Sunday, June 3, Graciela and her daughter-in-law Maria will be at the Montavilla Farmers Market (7600 Block SE Stark St.) serving another version of tamales from Puebla.
• Beginning Tuesday, June 5, find Irma and her daughter Lupe at the Oregon Health & Science University Farmers Market (700 SW Campus Dr) serving tamales. Do not miss her famous tomatillo salsa, another recipe from Puebla, Mexico.

The Mercado project turns one year old

The organizing, planning and development of the Portland Mercado began in earnest in March 2011, when over 30 Latino community members and entrepreneurs met at St. Michael’s church to engage in a Community Visioning Workshop with Portland State University’s graduate student group Adelante Planning.

Portland State University’s College of Urban & Public Affairs recently sat down and had a conversation with Adelante Planning. See what they have to say as they reflect back on a year of planning and collaboration.

The Asamblea convenes, elects new Mesa Directiva

The newly elected Mesa Directiva from left, Secretary Cynthia Herrera,Treasurer Alma Rosa Franco, President Meliton Martinez and general member Monica Moreno.

On Monday, February 27^th, the Portland Mercado’s “Asamblea” Community Group convened, and welcomed 10 new interested members who want to support the development of Portland’s First Latino Public Market. In attendance as observers were also representatives of the Portland Development Commission, the Latino Network, and Multnomah County Health Department’s “Community Capacitation Center.”

The Asamblea heard from each of its four subcommittees, or Comisiones. The site selection subcommittee gave a brief presentation on sites discussed at the January meeting, and mentioned that Marketek is conducting a market study based on the Lents neighborhood. John Jackley of PDC also very briefly explained the process of requesting PDC-owned sites for development. The vendor outreach and selection committee presented and welcomed many new interested entrepreneurs, including a couple that operates a Panadería, an operator of a Tortillería, and a family-run tamale business. Then the cooperative formation subcommittee explained with many visuals how the cooperative model would apply to the Mercado, and the advantages of forming a vendor-run cooperative. Gracias a Cynthia Lopez and Fernando Montagut for their hard work and clear explanations of the cooperative model.

The Asamblea concluded the meeting by electing a new Mesa Directiva, since the term of the interim leadership group expired in January. The subcommittee on internal rules explained its proposal for the election process, which was then enacted in two rounds of voting. At the end, Meliton Martinez was elected as the Mesa’s new president, Alma Rosa Franco the new Treasurer, Cynthia Herrera the new Secretary, and Monica Moreno the fourth voting member. Felicidades to all four of them. They will play a critical role in the Mercado’s development in 2012. We also wish to thank all of the outgoing board members for their hard work and effort. Gracias a Sara Garcia Gonzalez, Maria Garcia, Fernando Montagut, Cynthia Lopez, Claudia Moreno, Martha Perez and Sabino Amaro.

Partnership with Northwest Health Foundation will support a healthy Latino community

PORTLAND, Ore. – Today, Hacienda Community Development Corporation announced a partnership with Northwest Health Foundation (NWHF) in support of the Portland Mercado project. The Kaiser Permanente Community Fund (KPCF) at NWHF will contribute $50,000 towards the project with the goal of improving economic opportunity and social cohesion within Multnomah County’s Latino community.

“We are extremely grateful for the generous contribution from the Northwest Health Foundation,” said Victor Merced, executive director of Hacienda CDC. “This partnership will help us achieve our vision of a flourishing marketplace and Latino community center.”

The Mercado will address existing obstacles to health by creating new economic opportunities. According to research from the Kauffman Foundation, Latinos open small businesses at 1.5 times the rate of their non-Latino counterparts. In light of this, and inspired by successful Latino businesses in Portland and examples around the country, Hacienda CDC has identified the development of a Mercado as a significant economic development opportunity for low-income Latino entrepreneurs.

Additionally, the Mercado aims to provide improved access to fresh, healthy and culturally-relevant foods. In community surveys administered by Hacienda, Latinos expressed a desire to have more culturally appropriate foods in Portland, specifically produce like fresh fruits and certain cuts of high quality butchered meats. These types of fresh, healthy, culturally appropriate and when possible, local, foods will be a cornerstone of the Mercado, as they are in other Latino public markets throughout the U.S. and Latin America.

“Access to healthy foods and economic development have clearly been shown to influence community health,” said Thomas Aschenbrener, president of the Northwest Health Foundation.  “The Kaiser Permanente Community Fund is proud to play a role in supporting Hacienda’s work to address these social determinants of health.”

Hacienda develops affordable housing and builds thriving communities in support of working Latino families and others in Oregon by promoting healthy living and economic advancement.  For more information, visit www.haciendacdc.org

Kaiser Permanente Northwest established the Kaiser Permanente Community Fund at Northwest Health Foundation with a $28 million grant in 2004.  Since then, the Fund has awarded more than nearly $18 million in grants to organizations in the Kaiser Permanente service region who are working to improve social determinants of health.  You can learn more at www.nwhf.org/kpcf. 

Adelante Planning wins National Award for Portland Mercado

The Portland State University Masters in Urban and Regional Planning student group Adelante Planning, which ushered in the Portland Mercado project in Spring 2011 with Hacienda CDC, was just notified today that they won a national award from the American Institute of Certified Planners  for “Application of the Planning Process” with the work they conducted for the Portland Mercado from January to June 2011. Abigail Cermak, David Ruelas, Bridger Wineman and Ellen Wyoming were the members of Adelante Planning and the work they did laid the solid foundation for work that has continued to today with the Portland Mercado.  Congratulations Adelante Planning and thank you for your hard work as we continue to realize this inspirational project today!