Need

Multnomah Neighborhood Association (MNA) needs to increase active membership that represents all residents, such as homeowners and renters, all ethnicities, all incomes, and all ages in the neighborhood.  Some meetings do not even have a  quorum.  City studies in 2008, 2016, and 2019 call on neighborhood associations to reflect such representative membership.

Strategy

The membership appeal will be broadly inclusive.  MNA is for ALL residents of the neighborhood, along with business owners and people who work there.  It includes people who apply to be in the NA, even if they don’t live, work, or own in Multnomah.

It will also be designed to build membership that represents the demographics of the neighborhood. About half the residents o17f the Multnomah neighborhood rent their homes, yet the MNA board and committee chairs are homeowners.  As shown in the 2006 League report and other studies below, renters are underrepresented in active civic involvement, including neighborhood associations.  Therefore outreach will focus on renters first.

Recruiting renters should also make active membership more representative of all residents. They are more diverse ethnically, and on average are younger and have lower incomes than homeowners.  See the US Census and other selected references below for supporting data.

Broad activity areas

Immediate

  • Find out who’s out there.
  • Find out what residents are interested in
  • Partnering, reaching out
  • Increase attendance at membership meetings to have quorum
  • Meeting agenda featuring what’s been said is priority issues, ideas.

Longer term

  • Make meetings more involving
  • Make NA in general more involving
  • Develop a vision for the neighborhood

Some specific steps

  • Collect baseline and ongoing data of attendees at MNA meetings by category – Renters and Homeowners.  Others may be added after research.
  • Listen to renter and others’ needs and interests, and review those with our leadership.
  • Prioritize outreach to renters and other underrepresented people.
  • Adapt association priorities and meeting procedures to reflect diverse needs and interests.
  • Analyze changes in participation.  Do we gain active members?  more renters? Others?

Selected references

Multnomah Neighborhood Demographics.
https://www.portlandmaps.com/detail/neighborhood/MULTNOMAH/101_did/
46% renters in 2010, but no data on  trends since then.

2006 League of Women Voters Survey of Neighborhood Associations
https://www.portlandoregon.gov/civic/article/133150
Tenancy diversity in NAs  (p. 1)

2008 Community Connect report
https://www.portlandoregon.gov/civic/article/182408
Renters as underrepresented group e.g. p. 10

2016 Audit of the Office of Neighborhood Involvement
https://www.portlandoregon.gov/auditservices/article/597834
e.g. “other groups are locked out under the current model, including … underrepresented groups such as renters or low-income families.”  p. 18.

2019 A Code for All Portlanders  Office of Civic Life
https://www.portlandoregon.gov/civic/article/746599
Calls for “building a more inclusive and equitable Portland.” e.g. p. 1

US Census homeowner statistics 2nd Quarter 2020
https://www.census.gov/housing/hvs/files/currenthvspress.pdf
Homeownership lower for younger (p. 8), people of color (p. 9), lower-income (p. 10).

Better Together by Robert Putnam – Chapter 13 is on Portland neighborhood system.