Lender Forecloses on Troubled Family Shelter in Gresham

WaFD Bank foreclosed on Rockwood Tower, a 65-room family shelter in Gresham, after owner East County Housing LLC defaulted on $2.37 million in loans following Multnomah County’s termination of its contract over alleged financial mismanagement. The shelter was purchased in 2021 with a $6.8 million Project Turnkey grant distributed by Oregon Community Foundation, despite past accounting issues involving founder Brad Ketch, a former technology executive. The foreclosure raises questions about whether the property will continue serving homeless families as required by Project Turnkey deed restrictions, though Gresham continues renting rooms there after the county stopped payments in July.