Street Roots • Jan. 20-26, 2017
E d it o r ia l
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Street Roots
211 NW Davis St.
Portland, O R 97209
503-228-5657
Fax; 503-227-3117
www.streetroofs.org
www.news.streetroots.org
Hours: 7:30 a.m.3 p.nt. Mon.-Fri., 730
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PHO TO BY JOE GLODE
Talking housing and the streets with Ted Wheeler
had the opportunity to sit down with Mayor
Ted Wheeler last week in the midst of the
■
snowstorm to talk about housing and
homelessness. Here is our conversation.
fiX Ä sSC rli Ö Ä
Israel Bayer is the
executive director o f.
Street Roots. You can
reach him at
israel@streetroots.org
or follow him on
Twitter @israelbayer.
Israel Bayer: We have
had an unprecedented cold
right in front of our very eyes. That is
unacceptable. I don’t need to lecture you on it.
You live it.
I.B.: So you decided to keep the Portland H ousing
Bureau in yo u r portfolio; it’s the first time, I think,
in my tenure - I ’ve been in Portland on a nd o ff fo r ,
spellthis winter, creating a
nightmare reality for people
experiencing homelessness.
H aving fo u r individuals
By Israel Bayer
freeze to death on the streets
is devastating. Talk to us
about your team ’s response to
both the cold weather and ju st the harsh realities
you’re facing around homelessness right off the bat.
that u nder their wing. I guess w h a t’s y o u r reasoning
a nd w hat’s your vision fo r the bureau?
T.W.: The reasoning is that when I ran for
mayor, housing affordability was the single No. 1
issue that this community was concerned about
People áre experiencing high levels of anxiety
about being priced out of our community. The
Housing Bureau isn’t the only bureau that
addresses the problem of affordability, but it’s the
Ted Wheeler: This has been a record-breaking
key bureau. The Housing Bureau is at the nexus
severe weather event, and obviously it’s been the
for all the other bureaus that have a role to play in
top priority for my team. We’ve done a lot of
housing affordability - whether it’s the Bureau of
things that haven’t been done before. First and
Development Services or the Bureau of Planning
foremost, this administration pledged that
and Sustainability or some of the other bureaus
anybody who was sleeping on the streets who
involved in permitting, like fire. The Housing
wanted to come inside, we would make space at a
Bureau is the bureau that sets the agenda. I felt as
shelter. If that meant we had to find additional
mayor it was incumbent upon me tó be the leader
facilities, we’d find additional facilities. We opened
of that bureau. There really was no debate about
the Portland building, which is the city’s main
administrative building. It was initially opened as a it. People understood that if I was elected mayor, I
was going to take the Housing Bureau. That was
day shelter. As conditions worsened, we made it a
the reason, now the vision. It’s twofold.
24/7 shelter.
No. 1 ,1 want to enhance and protect the rights
In addition, along with the joint office at
of people who are tenants, and this is more
Multnomah County and community-based
specific to renters. I want to make sure that fewer
providers, 600 new beds have been opened just
people find themselves forced out of their housing
for this weather emergency. I was over at St.
situation and find themselves on the street by
Francis (a homeless center and dining hall). I
protecting their rights first and foremost and
went over this morning to talk to the folks at the
implementing a just-cause eviction process here in
American Legion Post where they opened up a
the city of Portland - which I hope to do in
shelter. We further directed first responders to
tandem with Commissioner (Chloe) Eudaly soon.
check in on people and do welfare checks. The
Second of all, I want to make sure we’re doing
police and fire bureau have been out every night.
everything we can to increase the supply of
They actually went out and got two vans that are
affordable and workforce housing in this city.
being specifically deployed to take people to
We’ve already got a pretty good plan in place. The
shelter and to take shelter workers to the shelter
housing bond has been passed; that’s one great
because the roads have been pretty rough.
I th ink the community response has gone great, resource for us.
There’s more the city can do in improving its
but let’s talk about what hasn’t gone great Four
own procedures and policies around housing.
people dying on our streets is unconscionable. I
Specifically we can greatly reduce the cost and the
cannot understand why, in a community that is
this economically vibrant - a progressive
See WHEELER, page 7
community - why people are freezing to death
Advertising
Interested in advertising in Street Roots?
Contact Israel Bayer at israel^treetroots.org
S taff
Executive Director
Israel Bayer
israd@streetn50ts.0rg
Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl
joanne@5treetroots.org
,
Vender Program Director Cole Merkel
cole@streetrodts.org
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