The Beatrice Morrow

The Beatrice Morrow Apartments is an 80‑unit affordable housing community built and owned by PCRI and managed by Cascade Management. The building was finished in 2018 and was created to help longtime and displaced residents of North and Northeast Portland find stable homes through the City’s Preference Policy.

The apartments are located on NE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, on the former Grant Warehouse site. The City chose PCRI and its development partner to turn the empty lot into new housing and community space during a time when the neighborhood was changing quickly.

The building has 79 affordable homes and one manager’s unit, with studios and larger apartments for families. Each home has air conditioning and a full kitchen, and every floor has laundry. There is also a community room and a small outdoor play area. Parking is available on a first‑come, first‑served basis, and the building is non‑smoking.

The project was designed with help from community members and is certified LEED Gold for its healthy, energy‑efficient features. It is close to parks, a community center, a hospital, grocery stores, and several bus lines.

The building is named after Beatrice Morrow Cannady, a civil rights leader who worked to make Oregon a fairer place. She was an editor for The Advocate newspaper, fought against unfair laws, and became the first Black woman to graduate from Northwestern College of Law. Her work inspired the spirit of this community-focused development.