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ortland's commercial real estate crisis has hit John W. Russell, a prominent developer, with Metropolitan Life Insurance Company suing him for breach of contract on a $63 million loan for the "Black Box," a 390,000-square-foot office building at 200 SW Market St. MetLife filed its suit in Multnomah County Circuit Court on June 23, seeking judicial foreclosure.

    Russell, 80, has been active in Portland real estate since starting his career as a partner at Melvin Mark Properties in 1970. He bought the Black Box in 1988 for $21.5 million and had a long-term tenant, Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield of Oregon, occupying 60,000 square feet of space until its lease expired.

    According to MetLife's complaint, Russell failed to make payments into a reserve account set up to attract new tenants after the pandemic and subsequent riots led companies to leave Portland. Despite multiple warnings from MetLife, Russell did not cure the default, leading to the lawsuit. In an interview, Russell dismissed the suit as "old news," citing issues with his lender but stating that nothing would change.

    Russell has been pushing for redevelopment of the Keller Auditorium across Market Street and has a history of successful partnerships in Portland real estate.