Oregon attorney general subpoenas records related to Made in Old Town

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield’s office has subpoenaed records related to Made in Old Town, an ambitious project to bring sneaker manufacturing to Portland that collapsed after receiving several million dollars of public funds.

A Rayfield spokesperson confirmed the Charitable Activities Section of his office subpoenaed records from the Old Town Community Association, which “fiscally sponsored” Made in Old Town.

“We’ve been cooperative and we’ve fully complied,” Elizabeth Nye, Old Town Community Association’s chair, said about the subpoena.

Nye, who became chair of the organization in April, declined to provide details, including when the organization received the subpoena and what information it provided to the attorney general’s office.

“Our review of (the) records is ongoing,” said Jenny Hansson, a spokesperson for Rayfield, in an email.

Hansson declined to share additional information.

Elias Stahl, a Made in Old Town board member, declined comment.

The organization wanted to bring sneaker manufacturing to Old Town and create a hub for the athletic footwear industry, one of the cornerstones of Oregon’s economy.

The ambitious project got a $2 million grant from the state in 2024. In February 2025, Prosper Portland, the city’s economic development agency, approved a $7 million loan to Made in Old Town for the purchase of two buildings.

The organization spent $6.1 million of the loan to acquire the Mason Ehrman Building, the former home of Prosper Portland, at the corner of Northwest Fifth Avenue and Everett Street, as well as an adjacent building to the south. The final $860,000 of the loan was not dispersed.

But tenants never moved into the buildings and Made in Old Town defaulted on the loan.

In a March post on LinkedIn, Made in Old Town’s board said “economic uncertainty,” including increased tariffs, had essentially scuttled the project by creating an “operating environment none of us anticipated.”

“Tariffs have rocked the industry,” the board said.

In May, Prosper Portland approved a settlement that essentially took the two buildings from Made in Old Town and forgave the loans instead of pursuing foreclosure proceedings.

A Prosper Portland spokesperson said the agency was unaware of the subpoena.

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