PORTLAND, Ore. — On the corner of Northeast Cully Boulevard and Killingsworth Street, Portlanders can find another kind of crossroads. A place that used to be home to a strip club and prostitution ring, is now home to 140 units of new, affordable housing — it’s called Las Adelitas.
Las Adelitas is the latest project from Hacienda Community Development Corporation, a local nonprofit that builds affordable housing with supportive resources all over the Portland metro area.
“It is a gorgeous, gorgeous building,” said Ernesto Fonseca, the CEO of Hacienda CDC.
Las Adelitas opened in December. And they’re currently accepting applications to rent the affordable housing units, which they hope will be filled by late spring. Fonseca is excited for those who may be struggling financially including immigrants, refugees and families, to get the opportunity to live in the safe and affordable space without feeling stuck.
PHOTOS: Affordable housing complex: Las Adelitas
“That is part of what this system does in this community. It never lets you get up,” said Fonseca.
“I would say the most significant change that families feel is peace and when you have that in your life, you can start moving forward with school with work, with finding employment, you name it.”
Michelle Hornbeck moved into Las Adelitas in December. The path Hornbeck took included homelessness and living in housing where she wasn't safe.
“It makes my heart feels warm for people to feel that they can come here and feel safe,” said Hornbeck. “I’m excited to meet my neighbors.”
Where Las Adelitas stands is the former site of The Sugar Shack, a strip cub that for decades had been a magnet for crime.
In 2017, the former owner was convicted on federal charges of tax evasion and running a prostitution ring. With millions of dollars in donations from community partners, Hacienda CDC bought the property, which is right across the street from their headquarters.
The day they took sledgehammers to the old strip club was a day they celebrated.
“We're trying to rebuild and empower the people that were affected by many of these activities in the past,” said Fonseca.
For that reason, Fonseca chose the name Las Adelitas. The name comes from Adela Velarde Pérez. During the Mexican Revolution, she recognized the men needed help, so she took up arms and led other women to do the same. Those women became known as Las Adelitas.
“That’s such a powerful story to me,” said Fonseca. “From a place of abuse to a place of empowerment and rebirth. That's what Las Adelitas is all about.”