PORTLAND, Ore. — After some cutting exchanges, Multnomah County commissioners succeeded Thursday in passing a plan for over $62 million in unspent funding intended for homeless services, which will distribute one-time funding for a number of different homelessness and behavioral health programs. The plan was not without significant criticism, as one commissioner called it rushed and "cobbled together."
The money comes from Supportive Housing Services tax dollars, collected beyond what county officials expected last year, and some unexpected federal funding. It will go toward seven key areas, including expansion of homeless shelters, behavioral health and addiction services, homeless day centers and cleaning up Portland's Central Eastside.
"It is about filling the gaps and putting the pieces in place to respond to the crisis we have right now in front of us," Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said.
The vote Thursday came after months of heated discussion and delays — leaving commissioners on Thursday neither entirely sold on the plan nor pleased with how they got here.
"The result is a package … that feels cobbled together because it was without a through-line that links the individual investments," said Commissioner Susheela Jayapal.
Regardless, Jayapal voted to pass the plan. Only Commissioner Sharon Meieran voted against it, and she made clear her criticism of the proposal and of her colleagues' support for it.
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"I am disgusted by this proposal," Meieran said, in part. "And it will look good when they point to the list of the things, they voted to invest in for their next political effort, but it will not change our systems, it will not move the dial — $60 million dollars more will go down the drain."
But Vega Pederson pushed back, calling out Meieran's insinuation that her colleagues are somehow not serious about addressing homelessness.
"Commissioner Meieran you are very out of line in impugning the motives of our partners, our staff, and the members of this board," she said.
Portions of the hour-long public testimony that preceded the vote were equally as biting, with Portlanders voicing their pent-up frustrations at how the city and county have handled the response to homelessness.
"You keep citing this law about we can't put anybody any place," one person said. "If we don't have anywhere to put 'em, make a place to put them!"
Details of the deal
Even if it is one-time funding, the spending package attempts to address the entire continuum of homelessness, behavioral health and addiction recovery needs.
The largest sum, $16 million, will go toward funding operations of 200 beds at the city of Portland's next two mass outdoor shelter sites. The first of the six total sites that Portland plans to open started bringing people in over the summer, although it has been a gradual ramp-up to its full capacity.
"Ultimately the city can't do this alone," Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said. "We'd like to see ongoing funding but that's a good start and we need them to act with urgency."
Another $6.85 million will go toward the creation of a 24/7 stabilization center, a place where people struggling with addiction or mental health issues can go for emergency sobering beds or drug detox services, albeit through Portland-area hospitals. In apparent response to criticism, the plan also includes $150,000 to work toward the design and planning of a 24/7 sobering drop-off center, which Meieran and others clamored for.
"We've heard you loud and clear that we need a sobering center," Commissioner Lori Stegmann said.
The plan also allocated $1.2 million for stabilization housing, operated by the nonprofit Bridges to Change. This is intended to provide a place for people to go after a hospital or detox stay in order to work toward recovery. Similarly, the county is putting $7 million toward recovery-focused transitional and permanent supportive housing, including housing placement and treatment for people struggling with mental health and substance use disorders.
With enforcement of Portland's daytime ban on homeless camps expected to begin soon, Multnomah County will put $3.3 million toward expanding day services by providers like Blanchet House and Rose Haven, as well as a new space in North Portland.
Another $9.3 million will go toward housing navigation and client assistance for people in temporary shelters so that they can enter other forms of housing and free up shelter capacity.
Then there is the funding meant to keep people from ending up on the streets in the first place. The county will put $8 million toward rent assistance and $2.1 million toward legal defense services for people facing eviction.
After bailing out the Bybee Lakes Hope Center through the end of the year, Multnomah County put $1.25 million toward sustaining 175 beds at the facility into 2024.
Other investments approved Thursday include $489,000 for neighborhood-based micro-village shelters, $133,000 for a dedicated homelessness services liaison in east Multnomah County, more than $230,000 to put lighting under county-owned bridges in the Central Eastside and $200,000 to expand the Downtown Portland Clean & Safe clean-up and employment program.
Once all was said and done, most of the commissioners were pleased with where the funding will go, even if they felt that the county needs a more distinct vision of what it's trying to accomplish. Meieran remained the outlier, saying that the plan represents the "status quo."
”It is a poster child for investing massive amounts of money with little or anything to show for it,” she said. “Can some of these things achieve good outcomes? Absolutely. But it will not change our systems and it will not move our dial.”
In all, Multnomah County has had more than $100 million to spend over the last few months, between about $40 million in the budget for homeless services that went unspent, $50 million from housing tax and $12 million from the federal government. As of Thursday's vote, the board has now allocated all of that funding.