3 NW Third Avenue, Portland, OR 97209

An addiction recovery program adds new space to increase its services to the community

Union Gospel Mission (UGM) is located in Portland's Old Town neighborhood, a low-income area with a poverty rate of 41.3% and unemployment rates in excess of 50%. UGM provides numerous social services, including LifeChange, a long-term addiction recovery program in which residents live and work at the facility for approximately four years while learning to overcome addiction.

UGM began a fundraising campaign to build a new expansion facility in 2001, but the campaign was hampered by the recession that followed the events of September 11. New Markets Tax Credit funding enabled UGM to close project financing, allowing construction to begin.

UGM's new 28,000 SF, four-story facility has allowed the LifeChange program to grow from 30 to 75 LifeChange participants. It has provided for residential space, classrooms, computer labs, a library, and administrative offices—all empowering Union Gospel Mission to offer a more complete recovery program for addicts.

Development Type: Addiction recovery program facility

Project Timeline: Completed Winter 2006

Project Partners: Portland New Markets Fund I, LLC; Union Gospel Mission; Portland Development Commission; US Bancorp Community Development Corporation

Total Project Cost: $7.1 million

NMTC Allocation: $7 million

Total Economic Impact: $21.9 million

Jobs: 148

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