Montavilla Community Land Trust · montavillalandtrust.org
The property beneath the Montavilla Farmers Market is for sale. We're organizing our neighborhood to buy it — and protect it forever — through a Community Land Trust.
The Situation
Since 2007, the Montavilla Farmers Market has anchored community life on SE Stark Street — growing from 17 vendors to more than 70, and becoming one of Portland's most beloved neighborhood markets. In late 2024, the owners of the 0.84-acre parcel at 7700 SE Stark Street notified the market that they intended to sell.
The property is now listed at $4,999,000. The market can continue operating until ownership transfers — but the zoning allows up to four stories of commercial and residential development. If a developer closes, the market may be displaced permanently, along with Portland Guitar Repair, the lot's only remaining tenant.
There is no timeline guarantee. A sale could happen at any time. But there is also an opportunity — one that communities in cities across the country have seized to protect beloved spaces through Community Land Trusts.
Our Vision
A Community Land Trust permanently removes land from the speculative market. The community owns the ground. Development serves people — not profit. Here's what we're building at 7700 SE Stark.
The land held in perpetuity for community benefit. It can never be flipped or redeveloped away from its mission. This is the legal and moral core of the project.
Industrial shade structures and landscape design make the outdoor market functional in Portland's rain — turning a seasonal venue into a year-round community fixture.
A sustainably built structure housing a commissary kitchen, commercial cold storage, and deep freezers — giving market vendors the infrastructure they need to grow.
Thoughtful landscape design ensures the lot remains open, welcoming, and ecologically active — green space for Montavilla permanently woven into the neighborhood.
How We Get There
Community land trust acquisitions have succeeded in cities across the country. Here's our roadmap.
Neighbors, vendors, and local businesses align around a shared vision. We're forming a steering committee, holding community meetings, and building the petition that demonstrates to funders and the city that Montavilla is organized and serious.
We establish the Community Land Trust entity — partnering with Proud Ground (Portland's established CLT) or forming a new 501(c)(3) with land trust bylaws. This is the legal vehicle that will own the land in perpetuity.
A Patronicity crowdfund (which can unlock city and state matching grants), community bonds, anchor donor outreach, and vendor founding pledges build our capital base. Every dollar demonstrates credibility to lenders and grant makers.
We pursue USDA Farmers Market Promotion Program grants, Meyer Memorial Trust, Oregon Dept. of Agriculture, and Portland CDBG funding — plus a bridge loan from a Portland-active CDFI (Craft3, Community Vision, or Beneficial State Bank).
With financing assembled, we make a credible offer — potentially structured as a bargain sale giving the sellers a meaningful charitable deduction. Then we break ground on the pavilion, mass timber hub, and landscape design that will define this space for a generation.
You don't need to be a developer or a lawyer. You just need to show up. This is how communities win.
Seed our acquisition fund. Every dollar signals to funders that this community is organized and serious about ownership.
Pledge NowHundreds of signatures show the city, the sellers, and our grant partners that Montavilla stands united behind this vision.
Sign NowPrint our flyer. Post on social. Tell every neighbor. This campaign wins through grassroots reach — one conversation at a time.
Get MaterialsBring skills in law, finance, design, organizing, or communications to the core team building this land trust.
Get InvolvedSign & Join
Sign our community petition and join the MCLT founding member list. We'll keep you updated on meetings, milestones, and ways to plug in as we move fast.
About This Effort
The Montavilla Community Land Trust is a neighbor-led coalition organizing to permanently protect the land at 7700 SE Stark Street through community ownership. We are residents, market vendors, and local business people who believe that Montavilla's most important gathering place should belong to the people who built it.
We are in the early stages of formal organization. We welcome neighbors with experience in law, nonprofit finance, real estate, design, organizing, and community outreach to join the steering committee.
Contact us at info@montavillalandtrust.org or follow #MontavillaLandTrust for updates.
This coalition operates independently from the Montavilla Farmers Market organization. Property listed by Premiere Property Group, MLS #647025177. Parcel R198852. Verify all information independently.