Portland nonprofit preparing to sell part of its property

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A Portland nonprofit plans to put up for sale some prime land on North Mississippi Avenue.

The ReBuilding Center, which operates at 3625 N. Mississippi Ave., will offer a 9,720-square-foot parcel located midblock at the address between North Beech and Fremont streets.

The property sale is expected to take one to two years as the ReBuilding Center evaluates options.

“We are going to try to make every effort to keep it in the service of the community,” Executive Director Jackie Kirouac-Fram said.

The nonprofit, founded in 1997, provides affordable reclaimed building materials to local residents, and teaches home repair and building skills. Its board of directors approved selling the parcel on May 13.

A building on the parcel requires a new roof and truss stabilization to remain safe. The repairs are estimated to cost $500,000, according to the nonprofit. Rather than incur that expense, the ReBuilding Center is opting to sell that parcel, and use the proceeds to strengthen its operating reserves, and to boost wages, training and career development for its employees.

It’s unclear if the building will stay.

“This crisis has highlighted cracks in so many systems, including our own,” Kirouac-Fram stated in a news release. “The sale of this parcel will help us become a stronger, more sustainable organization that can continue to serve our community and advocate for climate justice, reuse and repair for years to come. Our community needs our services, our planet needs less consumption of new materials, and our team needs stability.”

The ReBuilding Center will retain six parcels totaling approximately 40,000 square feet along a highly gentrified stretch of North Mississippi Avenue – a historically black neighborhood that is now home to trendy restaurants, shops and multifamily housing.