Prosper Portland, the economic and urban development agency for the city of Portland, has expanded its leadership team with two senior appointments focused on real estate, community development, and capital access. The agency announced that Lisa Pettinati will serve as director of real estate and community development, while Jenna Diallo has been named director of capital access.
In her new role, Pettinati is tasked with leading Prosper Portland’s urban development efforts across the city, including work in Portland’s 13 Tax Increment Finance (TIF) districts. Her responsibilities will span urban development initiatives within these districts as well as broader efforts throughout Portland. The agency notes that she brings a background as a strategic enterprise leader, with extensive experience in large-scale real estate and construction finance.
Diallo, as director of capital access, will oversee Prosper Portland’s lending and grant-making activities. Her work will focus on how the agency deploys financial resources through its loan and grant programs. According to the announcement, she has more than 20 years of experience in designing investment programs and building strategic partnerships, experience that is expected to inform how the agency structures and delivers its capital access initiatives.
Executive Director Cornell Wesley highlighted the importance of Pettinati’s experience in managing large-scale partnerships as Portland considers future investments. He pointed to the role of Prosper Portland in supporting catalytic projects and strengthening relationships in the city’s Central City area as well as in East Portland’s new TIF districts. Wesley indicated that Pettinati’s background in overseeing complex real estate and finance efforts will support the agency’s objectives in these locations.
Wesley also emphasized Diallo’s background in resource deployment as a key asset for the organization. He noted that her experience is expected to guide the agency in making thoughtful, results-oriented investments through both its grant and loan programs. This underscores Prosper Portland’s focus on aligning capital access tools with broader economic and community development goals.
Together, the appointments of Pettinati and Diallo signal Prosper Portland’s emphasis on integrating real estate strategy with capital access capabilities. By designating dedicated leadership over urban development in TIF districts and over lending and grant-making functions, the agency is positioning its team to manage both physical development efforts and the financial mechanisms that support them. While specific projects or transactions were not detailed in the announcement, the new roles frame how Prosper Portland intends to organize its work across the city.
The leadership changes also highlight the agency’s continued involvement in shaping Portland’s economic and urban landscape. With a mandate as the city’s economic and urban development agency, Prosper Portland’s decisions around real estate, community development, and capital access can influence the trajectory of investment activity, including how public and quasi-public capital is directed into neighborhoods and districts across Portland.
