From left: Derald Walker, PhD, President & CEO, Cascadia Health; Jim Hlava, Vice President, Housing Development, Cascadia Health; Herman Colas Jr., Founder, Colas Construction; James Owens, Superintendent, Centennial School District; State Representative Hoa Nguyen, House District 48; James Donnelly, Chief of Housing, Cascadia Health; Lori Stegmann, Multnomah County Commissioner, District 4; Philip Porter, Senior VP, Head of Acquisitions, Housing Credit Investments, Enterprise Community Partners; Lisa McClellan, Principal, Scott Edwards Architecture; Michael Hurley, Managing Director, Market Executive, Chase

Portland, OR – Last week, Cascadia Health celebrated the official grand opening of its newest affordable and supportive housing site, Centennial Place Apartments. Located in the heart of East Portland, Centennial Place includes 71 apartments and houses over 120 individuals and families with little or no income.

The event welcomed current residents, honored guests, and neighbors. It included remarks from Multnomah County Commissioner Lori Stegmann, Centennial School District Superintendent James Owens, Cascadia Health leadership, building partners, and funders.

“East County is a wonderful place to live and has a vibrant and engaged community,” said Commissioner Stegmann. “I’ve focused a lot of my energy on addressing housing stability and economic development, so it always brings me joy to celebrate not just a new building but beautiful new homes for East County residents.”

Cascadia Health began constructing Centennial Place in June 2021 and welcomed residents in October 2022. “This project was all about partnership, community, and working together,” said Superintendent Owens. “The Centennial School District is proud to have had a long-term partnership with Cascadia Health, providing health services to Centennial students and families. We are grateful to be able to deepen this partnership with the development of Centennial Place.”

Centennial Place includes community rooms, light-filled common spaces, and quiet rooms dedicated to homework—a direct result of the partnership between Cascadia Health and the Centennial School District. In addition, Centennial Place features environmentally sustainable elements that benefit the health of everyone, including solar power, energy star appliances, efficient heating and cooling, and more. As a result, Centennial Place will receive Earth Advantage platinum certification—the highest-level certification through Earth Advantage—demonstrating Cascadia’s commitment to the health of residents, the community, and the planet.

“I want to recognize that it takes many people to build something like this,” said Derald Walker, Ph.D., President and CEO of Cascadia Health. “With a strong development team, generous funders, and committed local leaders, this is now more than a building; it’s a community of residents, neighbors, health and wellness staff. Welcome home!”

Special thanks go to:

• Colas Construction
• Scott Edwards Architecture
• Housing Development Center
• Chase
• Enterprise Housing Credit Investments
• Energy Trust
• Equal Housing Opportunity
• U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
• Multnomah County
• Oregon Health Authority
• Oregon Housing and Community Services

About Centennial

Centennial Place includes 71 units of affordable housing, 18 of which have a rental preference for individuals living with mental illness and who have no or very low income, and 53 units reserved for low-income families with youth who are homeless or at risk of being homeless and who are currently enrolled in the Centennial School District. All residents have access to Cascadia resources and a full-time community manager who lives onsite, one part-time resident services coordinator, and one part-time peer wellness specialist—each engage residents and connect them to other community resources and promotes a positive and welcoming culture within the building.