QuickTake:

Officials have opened Ollie Court, which simultaneously tackles two challenges: housing and child care.

At Ollie Court, two four-story buildings along the 1500 block of West 13th Avenue in Eugene represent the region’s latest effort to meet the pressing need for more affordable housing in the region.

That’s not the only need the development addresses. It also features a learning center, offering a pathway for families who live there — or others who live elsewhere — to access early childhood education for their children.

The Leap and Learn Center is operated through Head Start of Lane County and other providers. The six classrooms can serve nearly 100 children, from the age of 18 months until they can attend kindergarten. 

The project is the first of its kind in Oregon, addressing two dire shortages. Officials from Homes for Good, the region’s housing authority, along with other city, county and state partners, gathered Thursday, April 30, to celebrate the opening of the development, while children frolicked on playground equipment nearby.

Eugene Mayor Kaarin Knudson reflected on the site’s history. The city owned the land since the 1940s and the Navy Reserve used it until 2011, when it became available for other purposes. 

“It’s much more than a building that we’re celebrating today,” Knudson said. “It’s really a foundation for stability and opportunity and connection that will return to our community for decades to come. We can’t even imagine what will grow from this seed that has been planted.”

Andrea Bell, executive director of Oregon Housing and Community Services, said the project reflects Oregon’s values as it looks to the future and takes into account the region’s needs.

“Part of what we’re here to do, and what I am excited for, is that we build towards a future that is not shaped by yesterday, but that we are looking towards a common future,” Bell told the group.

Lane County Commissioner Laurie Trieger said the development will help people. Treiger shared her personal experience: When she arrived in Eugene years ago with a 7-month-old baby, she and her partner — then a University of Oregon student — relied on food stamps for meals.

“In fact, when I first moved here, I might have become a resident of Ollie Court, had it existed,” Trieger said, praising the development. “Thanks to the many partners here and to all of you today, 81 families will have an extraordinary opportunity to end up more than OK, to end up safe and secure in this beautiful place.”

Children in the early learning center can be residents of Ollie Court or elsewhere. In that vein, housing clients are not required to have children enrolled in the learning center program.

The $48.5 million project is funded through a variety of state and local sources, as is common for affordable housing developments.

The two buildings have 81 apartments that people can access through vouchers. The early learning center is on the first floor of one of the buildings.

The 81 units include 15 one-bedroom apartments, 50 two-bedroom apartments and 16 three-bedroom apartments, with an eye toward reaching families. The two buildings have about 113,000 square feet total, with the apartments ranging in size from 612 square feet to 1,249 square feet.The three bedroom units are well-suited for families, with two full bathrooms.

A classroom display at the early childhood education center at Ollie Court in Eugene. The development has affordable housing and education programs. Credit: Ben Botkin / Lookout Eugene-Springfield

Ben Botkin covers politics and policy in Lane County. He has worked as a journalist since 2003, most recently at the Oregon Capital Chronicle, where he covered justice, health and human services and documented regional efforts to combat fentanyl addiction. Botkin has worked in statehouses in Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma and, of course, Oregon. When he's not working, you'll find him road tripping across the West, hiking or surfing along the Oregon Coast.