10
street roots
LilASL
CAMPING, from page 3
•has provided a safe place where people can
sleep, but equally important is the personal
impact the relationship has in breaking
down the isolation.
“I think that’s what we really need,”
Leslie said, again reflecting on the Occupy ,
movement “Good communities are those
where everybody is treated with respect
and dignity no matter what your station in
life or where you are in the artificial caste
system we use. It’s really possible that that
could be the real transformative moment”
The city and county’s winter shelter
services opened in November, and within
the first week, the number of people
arriving for shelter far exceeded last year’s
figures. As of Dec. 5, the county’s warming
center — which was projected to serve 40
to 60 individuals — held 90 people. Peak
capacity for the center is 102. Likewise, all
of the county’s family shelters were at
capacity. In all, the county reports the
family winter service system census is 150
percent more than the highest census for
any time in past years.
The unexpected and dramatic increase in
people needing shelter and living
assistance prompted the Multnomah
County Commissioners on Thursday to
pump nearly $800,000 in assistance to
housing and homeless services.
Staff in the family shelter system also
reported signficiant differences in families
seeking shelter this year. There were more
younger families, including teen parents,
and larger families with two heads of
household and multiple children. The
homeless youth system is also reporting
unprecedented numbers of youths seeking
shelter, with individuals being turned away
on a regular basis because of capacity
limits.
“I was hearing really heartbreaking
stories from everybody - from folks who
run our family shelters, from the folks at
the emergency shelters, from the folks who
are answering the phones at 211. It was
very consistent,” Commissioner Kafoury
says. “All our community partners were
telling me how really incredibly bad it is out
there. It just seemed like we had to do
something big and we had to do something
broad. It wasn’t just one particular area -
it was every part of our system.”
The request comes in advance of the
peak shelter demand month of January,
when county representatives and service
providers expect even higher numbers of
people seeking shelter. According to the
one-night homeless count, the number of
unsheltered homeless families with
children in Multnomah County increased by
35 percent in 2011 over 2009.
“We continueing to get new people,
people who we haven’t seen before, people
who are new to the system,” Kafoury said.
“If they are younger, they were able to live
with family or relatives for a while. But they
haven’t been able to get back on their feet”
The bulk of the $787,000 infusion from
the county’s General Fund — $450,000 — is
earmarked for eviction prevention. The rest
will support higher than expected demands
on warming shelters for families, as well as
housing placement and rent assistance.
In addressing the City Council
Wednesday, JOIN Executive Director M arc.
John spoke in support of the resolution,
saying his organization has seen an
unprecedented number of car campers in
the past year.
“They live in the constant fear of being
told to move on, ticketed or towed,” John
said. John recounted the story of a man
who had left his trailer in a parking lot to
go downtown and access services, only to
return to find his trailer had been towed.
He had no money to pay to get the vehicle
back, and consequently, because of lien
laws, lost all of his possessions inside. For
people like this, Joline said, this policy will
be invaluable. “It will help them live more
safely while they are still on the streets and
work more effectively with us to get off the
street,” John said. “It complements rather
than takes away from our focus of helping
people end their homelessness.”
In Eugene, just one of many cities in the
country that have allowed overnight car
camping, the number of sites for campers
has fluctuated between about 30 and 50
sites. One of those sites is the First
Christian Church, where Dan Bryant, the
senior minister, said people donated
trailers to make them available to the
homeless.
“I think it’s very much of an opportunity
for church members to become aware of
what are the issues that people face,”
Bryan said. “And that’s a big eye opener to
see someone in that situation to become
self supporting.”
The new camping policy will be reviewed
in a year. Among Fish’s goals is to have at
least a dozen faith and nonprofit partners
serving as host sites, with minimal
complaints from neighboring businesses
and residents, “and ultimately, I’d like to
see the families that are served moved
through the pipeline and get into
permanent housing.” Fish said he expects
there will be skeptics of the plan, but
doesn’t accept the suggestion that this
program will draw more people without
homes to the city. That hasn’t been the
case in Eugene, and there’s no evidence
that it has happened in Portland, he said.
“Of all the arguments that are used to
delegitimized our work, the one that I find
most offensive is the “magnet” or “welcome
mat” argument It is used by some of our
critics on the right as basically an excuse to
do nothing. There is no evidence that by
investing in affordable housing we have put
out the welcome m at for low-income people
around the country. The overwhelming
majority of people we serve in Portland has
ties to the region. And frankly, I would
proceed with these programs even if it did
cause us to have a reputation as a humane
and progressive city. This is a national
problem and Portland is going to do its
part.”
.R E -E LE C T I
/ V iM U N C lu
Dec. 23 2011
Protest rap
By Kathy Carlile
invasion
occupation
eviction
the politician and television
give explanation of the confrontation
by persuasion and confession
It’s the manifestation of
imagination
the situation of the condition
an expression of the petition
to transition from the illusion
of consolidation and acquisition
to a fairer distribution
indignation against corruption
of democracy by corporation
an interpretation of a vision
depiction of com-passion
re-conception of the revolution
revitalization of participation
action as inspiration
F RI
PORTLAND C ITY COONCIL
OUR VOIC E IN C ITY HALL
Spending tax dollars w isely
to serve all Portlanders
Limiting cam paign donors
to $5-$50 per person
www.Amanda2012.com
503-960-3720
Tfo fifautfSes?{for* n foten.
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