[00:00:00] Introduction to the AfroFuturism Oasis Mission

[00:00:02] Laquida Landford: I always felt like I've had some sort of like bigger purpose, some bigger type of energy, bigger questions. The Oasis is inspired by Afrofuturism, a way for Black folks to reimagine  our past and our present and really thinking about our future. So Afrofuturism is like the root, connecting nature, connected spirit. This work was not anything that I ever thought that I would be doing. I just really felt like I came back to Oregon at the right place at the right time. I had some questions from the higher beings or the universe being like, what's going on? You know, there's a lot of change, but also again, wanted to be a problem solver in the questions that I also had. 

[00:00:51] Afrofuturism and the Birth of Afro Village

[00:00:51] Laquida Landford: My name is Laquida Lanford. My pronouns are she, her. I'm the founder and organizer of Afro Village. I'm the executive director.

[00:01:01] Sola DaSilva: Welcome to third space. I am your host. Sola DaSilva. I am an architect and storyteller. And third space is where we have meaningful conversations about architecture and wellbeing. Giving you the tools to design a life that works for you. I'm passionate about creating a world that is inclusive and full of beautiful spaces that truly reflect our humanity and inspire us to be our best selves. I'm so happy that you're listening. Let's get into it.

[00:01:42] The Impact of Gentrification in Portland

[00:01:42] Laquida Landford: About two years before the pandemic, I started to recognize that we were having more intense winters here in Portland. When I moved back to Portland in 2014, there was a snowstorm. And that snowstorm was like very, it was ice it had shut the whole entire city back down. And I had not been in Portland for about 10 years. It didn't really bother me at the beginning, but to hear how it affected folks. Through that, I recognized that rent for just housing was very expensive.

[00:02:17] My sister had moved to Portland in 2007. And she was paying rent, like, it was, this was before what we now know is gentrification or and displacement, but she was paying about 595 dollars for a two bedroom. I, before I left from Portland in 2005 was paying about 600 bucks for a beautiful apartment, washer and dryer, all these amenities, right? So there was that change that shift in and people moving to Oregon and moving to Portland and Portland getting this recognition or this visibility around keep Portland weird or Portlandia. You know, And My sister mostly would tell me that a lot of people are moving here. Rent is now going up. She was pregnant, gave birth to her child and she had to move from where she was living because she just was priced out of the place that she had been living for several years. And before she lived there, my cousin had lived in that same apartment in this little small duplex in Northeast Portland, where is the historically black community. 

[00:03:23] So it just seemed like our community, black people didn't really have a place to connect again. 

[00:03:29] Marta's Journey and Architectural Vision

[00:03:29] Marta Petteni: My name is Marta Pettini. I am an Italian architect. I studied five years in Milan, Polytechnic of Milan, and the type of architecture that we were doing there was high end residential, very rich clients. I quickly realized that was just serving 2 percent of the world population and there was probably more that architecture could do.

[00:03:52] I had the privilege and opportunity to travel to Ecuador and work with an indigenous community there. And when I come back, I decided that I wanted to do a master that was more focused on international cooperation and emergency architecture. So really looking at refugee camps, post disaster reconstruction, informal settlement and all of that.

[00:04:14] I had the opportunity to join the Center for public interest design at Portland State University for an internship, which then became a full time job which then brought me to the Homelessness Research and Action Collaborative through which I met Laquida. And so it has been really exciting for me to work with communities throughout these years and really to try to use design as a tool, as a vehicle to address broader social and environmental issues and not seeing design just as like the ultimate goal and the ultimate outcome.

[00:04:46] Collaborative Efforts for Community Solutions

[00:04:46] Sola DaSilva: Honestly, you both are so impressive, and I know that it takes a lot of tenacity to start and to continue to push within systems that don't typically want you to do that. And Laquida, you know, you talking about your story and how that was part of the catalyst and part of the push to start something and start looking for solutions. I think sometimes when terrible things happen in society, not many people take it upon themselves to say, I can be part of that solution. I can do something to solve that problem. And I think that's why this project is so touching, because it goes beyond saying, this is somebody else's problem to solve. How can I be part of the solution? 

[00:05:33] Laquida Landford: This work was not anything that I ever thought that I would be doing. I just really felt like I came back to Oregon at the right place at the right time.

[00:05:42] I had some questions from the higher beings or the universe being like, what's going on? You know, there's a lot of change, but also again, wanted to be a problem solver in the questions that I also had. 

[00:05:55] So I do believe that I've been pretty much guided by a lot of spiritual or scholars before my time to be in the position that I am today, I feel like I do have a responsibility to help steward this environment that we all live in. 

[00:06:13] Through these last past few years in the pandemic it has brought us to supporting our unhoused community, but folks who are just housing insecure, folks that we know that it may be a food component, it may be a health issue. Again, breaking through that isolation and wanting people to come as we are moving into repair and still dealing with the pandemic.

[00:06:38] Where can people go in this city that they feel safe? Where can people go in our community that they feel included?

[00:06:45] It was just Marta and I in the beginning having conversations. She was very much like a listener, learning from a black woman. There's not a many black people in Italy, you know. I'm very open and bold and talking the way that I express myself and she listened a lot and she was very helpful. She brought what I was thinking in my mind, catching all of the bits and pieces and bringing it to an illustration.

[00:07:11] So I took that tool, you know, we grow the tool together so that I can express myself into community. And she was in the background, but she was always there in support. So it was an exchange. I feel like an exchange of history. I think that's what brings us really closer together in this project. And it's just not a project for us anymore. It's really what we see is the future and being able to articulate that and have amenities for community you know, in any type of like, I wants to say a natural disaster, but anything that kind of shakes up someone's life.

[00:07:45] Sola DaSilva: I think it's such an amazing union between the two of you and how you've pulled this together. 

[00:07:52] Designing a Safe and Inclusive Space

[00:07:52] Sola DaSilva: Marta, what are some elements in the design that represents some of the concepts we've talked about like belonging, community? What are some design elements that kind of bring all of these things together? 

[00:08:06] Marta Petteni: And convert one of them focused on food, one of them focused on hygiene and one of them focused on therapy. And so just have these three trains be able to still move across the city, reach communities in needs and provide these different services. Now, after three years of a long, long journey, we have finally been able to identify a site on the east side of the river. What is exciting about the site, uh, is that it's part of a larger vision. There is the Albina Vision Trust, which is another organization that has a broader vision for the area to revitalize the neighborhood and we are now having conversation with them also to see how this project can be the first injection into the future vision and how we can really start to support communities now while they plan residential buildings and other services and so on. We are still in the stages of finalizing the design layout for the space. We know for now that we want to reuse one train, which means two cars. We're talking right now about feeling of privacy and publicness and how we want this space to really feel safe, how much we want to incorporate nature. We know nature is going to be really critical. not only trees, but talk about native plants, talking about community gardens where we can grow our own food and also as a complement also have a market fresh produce market spaces for the community. We are talking right now about elements like a fence because ideally we will not need a fence. Ideally, this could be like a public space, but from a practical standpoint, we might need one. How can you design a fence that still feels welcoming and inclusive and not something that is excluding you? Accessibility is also really central for us people with different disabilities are going to be able to access this site and I think the other big part of the proposal is clean energy. So we've been talking a lot about solar panels, right? And how that can help create a very resilient hub in case of an emergency as well, but also as a tool to educate our community. We are excited about the bigger vision for the neighborhood and really continue this engagement with the community to make sure that the space that we create can be a safe, healing and welcoming hub for them.

[00:10:38] Connecting Roots and Identity

[00:10:38] Sola DaSilva: One thing I'm wondering about is the connection between the Afro, right, and the idea of community and spirituality. Can you talk a little bit more about that connection? 

[00:10:53] Laquida Landford: I feel like it's really like reconnecting with our roots. I was born in America, but I have a parent that is from Central America. I also lived in Belize. I went to high school in Belize. My grandma was a big influence in connecting my roots. I just knew when I was little, they had an accent and I didn't know where that accent was. I just was brought up in a very different way. And so as I got older and making things my own, and when I turned to my early thirties, it was the tip of, you know, asking myself who I am, and what I'm here to do cause I didn't feel like I was amongst my peers.

[00:11:30] I always felt like I've had some sort of like bigger purpose, some bigger type of energy, bigger questions. I've been feeling like I was ahead of myself. So really feeling like a futuristic person. The Afro is reclaiming my roots. I wanted to be true to my identity. I wanted to be true to myself. I wanted to reclaim Afro. Because Afro meant, like, it's just the root word. And then village, it was really thinking about my community when I went back home after 17 years. I'm with my grandma, and I'm in my community, and people still remember me from being gone. So I wanted to bring that feel to Portland. It really was a space for black women and those who were going through that transition of health, spirituality, belonging. And so that's how I really connected Afro village to present that to Portland as a third place.

[00:12:21] Sola DaSilva: I love the word belonging. I really like that. Marta and I want to ask you as a designer, just listening to everything that Laquida just talked about how did that feel just hearing all of those things? And how did you translate that into a sketch or into a project? 

[00:12:41] Marta Petteni: Well, I would say that I've been listening to Laquida for the past four years and every word is always the most inspiring that I hear and I think for me as a designer, you know, we are taught that we always have the answer and we always can lead whether it's like projects or community engagements or the design of anything. And I think being at this partner with Laquida has really taught me of taking like a backseat being on the passenger side seat and being able to use my skills and my expertise to support and really advance that vision. And then I think beside this, like we just have really nice conversations. And again, it all comes back to the fact that design for me is always a tool to achieve something broader and higher and bigger and working with Afro Village has been like a really great testament to this, I believe. 

[00:13:39] Laquida Landford: We didn't know that we were going to be here three or four years later. I think our first meeting was a zoom call. Marta had showed me like this graphic that she pulled together. I was mostly on the ground doing a lot of advocacy work in the community, in my neighborhood, just in my neighborhood. It was months of being out on the front line and fighting for folks like resources and trying to redistribute that. It was when the competition came about to reuse this train and I think we both got the email and in one of our meetings we talked about it. And I was like, yeah, food is very important. Having a safe space for people to come in just to get the resources, which I was doing a lot of this in the old town neighborhood that I live in and then some sort of therapy.

[00:14:26] Marta Petteni: We started like Laquida and I, but now we do have a team we all have a team of designers. And I think it's beautiful to see the diversity of backgrounds and identities and how they all enrich that is afrofuturism Oasis and how our different experiences are really being shaping this proposal. 

[00:14:47] The Role of Food and Community Support

[00:14:47] Sola DaSilva: I think in every culture, food is always something that brings people together whether it's the cooking of food or eating it together or growing the food together. Laquida, how has food insecurity played a role in the work that you're doing when it comes to access to fresh veggies or good food? Why did it play an important role in Afrofuturism Oasis. 

[00:15:10] Laquida Landford: I moved from Houston to Portland and the conversation around food equity and food sovereignty was happening in Portland. One of the first things that I was actually attached to was a community garden and used to host and grow food up through Urban League's garden. So I was hearing a lot about food deserts and also the initiative that Michelle Obama brought to the forefront around having healthier food in our school systems.

[00:15:37] Marta Petteni: so I feel like it's interesting to see that we have the food component as well as like the hygiene component. I think we realize the necessity to have a bathroom that folks can use. We're going to have food trucks on site and dining spaces. We're going to have co working spaces where youth specifically can access technology, Wi Fi, meditations spaces. I think a lot of our rooms Are also going to be flexible so that we can really adapt and also evolve the programming as we gain response from the community. 

[00:16:10] Laquida Landford: When we talk to having bathrooms and showers, just recognizing that's dignity and somebody's humanity to feel that way. Or you can come to a place that you don't have to pay for at times, or, the services that we see a lot of people have to stand in line. And since the pandemic, I'm keep saying it because it's so true that a lot has been exposed.

[00:16:33] So one way that we thought during that time is how we're looking at it to be more available to the community that they have access and like Marta said, not to feel like you don't belong in this certain space, but also like Marta mentioned about the Albina vision trust which is being led by black Oregonians that have lived here their whole lives. So we're sort of visitors, right? Like, I didn't grow up here. I didn't go to high school here, but I have lived here and this is my community as well. And so being a part of how do we make all of that be ours as well, and not to feel like we're stepping on people's toes or and how can we be included and how can we be helpful? And how can we be supportive? Because that's really just what we're trying to do is, like, again, either one of us thought we would be doing at least. I didn't think that I would be doing this, but it has come with a lot of it comes with a lot of responsibility and thoughtfulness and intention within that. So how we create our programming and not and don't want to think about we're programming you, but thinking about, we're providing a holistic approach. We're providing something to empower the next person so that they feel that they are connected and we're all a part of the village. No matter what you bring to the village to the community, your community, your village, your tribe. And that's the way I feel about the programming. 

[00:18:01] Challenges and Future Visions

[00:18:01] Sola DaSilva: And what has been the reaction from some of your partners and community members to this work so far? 

[00:18:08] Marta Petteni: I feel for sure like this proposal is so grounded in the work that Laquida has been doing in the community for so many years that the need has been so visible and tangible that I feel like it's undeniable what those critical needs are and how much these services are needed.

[00:18:25] I feel the Albina Vision Trust is going to be a really great partner to develop this vision and also have it like really long term. We have had some challenges throughout this journey, of course, tied to the reusing of the train, but also just to be able to identify a site and be able to get a lease for this site. And that's, I think it's the struggle always with City and like partners that work within more rigid systems that have been established, uh, uh, and in place for so many years. So I think cutting through that, uh, and really being creative and really pushing the boundaries is, uh, in that sense, has been a challenge but I feel there is so much purpose and fulfillment in what we're trying to do that we are still doing it. 

[00:19:11] Laquida Landford: And from that historical standpoint of Oregon's history and the reason why the Albino Vision Trust really has taken off I mean, we just read yesterday that they were able to accomplish a goal of getting nearly half a billion dollars to revitalize Some historical displacement that has happened to the African American community that were really trying to set their roots here since the 1900s and had not been able to do that because of the racism in these systems and not including folks voices for the last hundred plus years of this city. So we're at a really good place because there is a turn of history that we are benefiting from. Especially as myself as I identify as a black, a black person and a black woman. Being able to be really proud to be a part of this vision and their bigger vision, because when I found out about it, I was excited that it's going to happen. 

[00:20:09] I was going to a lot of community meetings and listening to a lot of history. I was upset about it, but I also was in my other spirit mind of, you know, Where do we heal? How do we transform that trauma that we've dealt with as Black people and African people and immigrants. I could talk about the past all the time that's not going to get me in a lot of places. We can acknowledge that we've been through some things and then how do we get, you know, like that doesn't happen, like history doesn't repeat itself and that we're a part of that solution with the Oasis. 

[00:20:39] Sola DaSilva: when you look into the future, 5 years, 10 years from now, what do you see? 

[00:20:44] Marta Petteni: I see a thriving and I see our Oasis expanding and growing and I see people from their homes accessing the oasis, using the services, finding community, reducing social isolation, and you should see the site Sola it's so beautiful. It has like this really nice river view and there is this longer plan of connecting our site to the rest of the waterfront. So I think I can see it. I can see the turning point and I can see how much people are going to benefit from it. So I think having that vision, it's really what motivates us today to keep pushing a little bit further.

[00:21:32] Laquida Landford: I see more people from our communities connected to that space and being more aware and knowledgeable and prepared for any type of life situation coming up. It will be a demonstration that people have built something together. In the next 5 to 10 years there's going to be a significant amount of development happening around Portland. I feel that. People will get a chance to see solar energy and see how their communities are going to be empowered. I feel like people coming together, no matter what time of the year it is, and being able to be at the oasis, whether they're coming for Coffee in the winter or something of that nature, I just feel like it's going to bridge a lot of gaps that the city and the state has not seen historically. My hope is that people will be more grounded and there'll be more wealth in our community. right now people are surviving. We're talking to them all this affordable this and my hope is that in five years people will be more established and have more stability because that's what the Albina vision trust is hoping and designing for is more black people in the city to be thriving and not just surviving.

[00:22:50] Sola DaSilva: I think there's so much intention and care in all of the things that you've described, all of the activities, all of the programming that just shows spirit. I'm genuinely looking forward to it coming to fruition and seeing it thrive, because I believe that this will be part of a collective healing. I'm really honored that you both have joined me and thank you so much for your time. 

[00:23:15] The Concept of Third Place

[00:23:15] Sola DaSilva: The final question, what does third place mean to you? 

[00:23:19] Marta Petteni: I think for me third place is finding that community and it's being able to fully be yourself, but also be together, heal together. And, I think throughout this year, Afro Village has been my third place. It didn't start as a job. It was really a passion and a friendship, and, it has been grown to my job ultimately, but it's still like really that third place for me where I can find my community. 

[00:23:47] Laquida Landford: That resonates as well. Afro village um, yeah, it has been before I even knew it was my third place, it has been my first, second and third place because I've been spending the last five years just exploring all of these different ways of life and I have grown a lot. there's no one situation that has been perfect. and there's frustration, but I come back to this place, I come back to my office. I come back. We don't just have what we say. We're not a place where a movement. So, you know, having people join the movement, having people be a part of the future creation of Afro village and knowing that folks have a third place. Before Afro village, when it was in its infant stage, or I was contemplating it. I used to hang out at a coffee shop called Floyd's Coffee Shop, and that was my third place. And that's where I would go and meet with people and come up with all my creative, crazy ideas, booked and busy. I always have something theming around, you know, trying to stay in the game as getting, older. But I'm closer to 50 than I am to 40. So I'm working on, I'm working myself out of a lot of things, but still want to be connected to the third place and actually want to see Afro village thrive. The way that has been visually shown to me through my community and my ancestors. So yeah 

[00:25:14] Sola DaSilva: Thank you for listening to this episode of Third Space. Be sure to like, subscribe, and share. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Send me emails, DMs. Adios, friends. Until next time.