Portland Development Commission

The Portland Development Commission (PDC) was created in 1958 to serve as the City of Portland’s urban renewal and economic development agency. PDC’s mission is to create one of the world’s most desirable and equitable cities by investing in job creation, innovation and economic opportunity throughout Portland.

Guided by the city’s 2009 Economic Development Strategy and the more recently adopted Neighborhood Economic Development Strategy, PDC invests in business and job growth, workforce training, innovation, catalytic projects and an ecosystem that nurtures entrepreneurs and small businesses, with a particular emphasis on neighborhood business development and the city’s signature industry clusters: athletic outdoor, clean technology, advanced manufacturing and software.

Consistent with its commitment to economic opportunity, PDC is making strategic investments to  revitalize commercial corridors in traditionally underserved areas of the city. PDC’s recently established Neighborhood Prosperity Initiative (NPI) will direct urban renewal resources to build community capacity in six East Portland neighborhoods and transform them into engines of economic and community development.

The PDC has played a key role in making Portland one of America’s most livable cities, using urban renewal as a tool to strategically focus public resources across the city.