NEWBERG, Ore. — Local business and community leaders, city councilors, county commissioners, and a state representative gathered Monday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the launch of a new housing project in north Newberg, with ground scheduled to break Tuesday.
HIVE, an acronym for Housing Innovation Village Experience, is breaking ground at 3509 N. College St., launching a project years in the making that developers hope will have doors open to buyers within a few months.
“This is the end of the beginning,” said Missing Middle Housing Fund co-founder and CEO Nathan Wildfire. “It’s been the culmination of lots and lots of work.”
The project began in 2019 as a response to rising housing costs in the state. While multiple organizations were working to address affordable housing — defined as housing for those earning less than 80% of the area median income — there was little emphasis on building homes for workers earning between 80% and 120% of AMI. The average median household income in Newberg is $93,232 according to census data…