PORTLAND, Ore. – Portland Mayor Charlie Hales on Tuesday announced the end of his controversial “Safe Sleep” policy, which allowed homeless people to sleep uninterrupted on city streets.
“Houseless people, housed people and the police bureau indicated the guidelines were not practicable,” the mayor’s office said in a news release Tuesday afternoon.
The mayor admitted his policy caused confusion, and said police and homeless outreach workers had a difficult time educating people about the difference between a safe night’s sleep and illegal camping.
The policy ends Tuesday night, but the areas with the greatest negative impact on livability will be targeted for enforcement first.
“The city will continue to work with social service providers and the police bureau to communicate to homeless people the situations that will be prioritized for enforcement,” said the statement from the mayor’s office.
The majority of people in a Facebook poll agreed with the mayor's decision to end the program.
Hales said the city will support creating new outdoor shelters that include basic services like water and sanitation, similar to the Hazelnut Grove camp.
Last week, the mayor delayed his planned sweep of the Springwater Corridor, which will displace hundreds of homeless people in a city with a shortage of shelter beds. The corridor, which has become the center of Portland's homeless crisis, will be cleared on Sept. 1.