Portland housing officials on Tuesday said they could build or preserve 1,300 affordable rental units if voters approve a $258.4 million tax measure this fall.

Fewer than half of those units would be set aside for the city's poorest residents who have the fewest housing options.

Portland Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who oversees the Portland Housing Bureau, described the spending plan as incremental progress toward helping the city's most vulnerable residents.

"The need is overwhelming," Saltzman said Tuesday. "But you've got to find a solution step by step."

City officials have been rushing to finalize details of a bond measure heading to the Portland City Council at 2 p.m. Thursday. Although Saltzman is asking the City Council to send the tax hike to voters on the Nov. 8 ballot, spending details weren't released until Tuesday afternoon.

City officials plan to build or preserve 600 units for households earning up to 30 percent of the region's median income, which for a family of four is $22,000.

Portland badly needs those apartments. According to statistics, Portland lacks 23,295 units for households in that income range.

At the same time, city officials plan to build or preserve 700 units for households earning up to 60 percent of the region's median income, which for a family of four is $43,980.

The need in that income range is far smaller. Statistics show a deficit of 2,050 units for a portion of that income group, based on existing units and demand.

Saltzman said it's expensive to build or preserve units for the lowest-income earners. Officials on Tuesday didn't provide records showing how many units could be funded if the city focused exclusively on households earning up to 30 percent of the region's median.

Officials also didn't respond to questions detailing how many new and preserved units would be set aside for Portland's lowest-income residents. Generally, the Housing Bureau said that 950 units would be built and 350 units would be preserved - but officials didn't break down those numbers by income group.

Susan Emmons, executive director for Northwest Pilot Project, is a staunch advocate for building housing for Portland's lowest-income group. Emmons said she supports the city's proposed split and called the plan "laudable."

"They're very hard to develop," she said of building units for people with the lowest incomes.

The proposed bond measure would mark Portland's single-largest investment in housing and would provide new opportunities to hundreds of families. The 20-year bond measure would raise taxes by about 42 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, or the equivalent of about $75 a year for a home assessed at $178,320.

Portland would own the units but outsource operations. The local housing authority, Home Forward, would manage the buildings and a non-profit or for-profit company would provide staffing on-site, Saltzman said.

"They'll be lifetime assets," Saltzman said.

Officials acknowledge that they are budgeting about $200,000 per unit, which is about double their preferred contribution for affordable-housing projects. They say they need to spend more per unit because city ownership precludes tapping private investments or some tax credits, requiring a deeper public subsidy.

"Public housing costs money," said Israel Bayer, a housing advocate who accompanied Saltzman to a Tuesday interview with The Oregonian/OregonLive editorial board.

Housing officials want at least half of the newly built units to be family-friendly, featuring at least two bedrooms. They plan to work with Home Forward to secure several hundred Section 8 vouchers to subsidize rents for the lowest-income residents.

If approved, Portland officials hope to begin adding affordable units first by scooping up existing properties. Saltzman pointed to an estimated 2,500 units owned by apartment mogul Joe Weston, who is planning to unload properties.

"We would hope to be able to purchase some of those units with bond money," Saltzman said.

-- Brad Schmidt

bschmidt@oregonian.com

503-294-7628

@cityhallwatch

-- Brad Schmidt

bschmidt@oregonian.com

503-294-7628

@cityhallwatch