Kimberly Branam Leaves Prosper Portland After 8 Years as Executive Director

Kimberly Branam, who served eight years as executive director of the city’s economic development agency, Prosper Portland, is departing.

In an Aug. 16 email, Branam wrote to staff that she was leaving for a job at the Port of Portland, where she’ll serve as its chief trade and economic development officer. Her last day at Prosper is Sept. 27.

“It has been an honor to serve in this role and to work alongside such talented colleagues, dedicated partners, and inspiring leaders to create economic growth and opportunity across Portland,” Branam wrote. She’s worked at Prosper a total of 13 years, eight of them as executive director. “Thank you for your partnership, support, guidance, and friendship as we’ve faced layered challenges and shaped our city’s future together.”

Prosper Portland, formerly the Portland Development Commission, is the agency that transformed neighborhoods like the South Waterfront and the Pearl District using tax-increment financing districts, more commonly known as urban renewal areas. But that tool fell out of fashion about a decade ago as city leaders became more cognizant of how it fostered gentrification, pushing communities of color east as housing costs spiked.

Prospe has tried over the past decade to refashion its purpose after TIF districts drew increasing scrutiny. As its existing TIF districts expire and fewer funds return to the agency, it’s had to cut staff and get creative about finding new income streams.

The agency has also struggled in recent years to deliver on any big projects. (The ongoing Broadway Corridor redevelopment at the former post office site in Northwest Portland is seen as a chance for Prosper to deliver a meaningful win.)

Branam departs the agency as it plans to pitch several new, smaller TIF districts to the City Council this fall and the Broadway Corridor development picks up speed. Her departure comes, too, just months before an overhaul of the city’s entire government structure: Come Jan. 1, 2025, all city bureaus will be overseen by a professional city administrator while a 12-member City Council sets policy.

Branam made no mention of who will serve as Prosper’s next executive, or interim, director. Mayor Ted Wheeler said in a statement he will be searching for a new executive director alongside other city officials.