Portland and Multnomah County to create 200 more emergency shelter beds

Published 10:28 am Thursday, December 19, 2024

Portland and Multnomah County leaders jointly announced they will open 200 new overnight, winter emergency shelter beds to provide relief to the homeless as the weather gets colder on Thursday, Dec. 19.

The announcement was made by Multnomah County Chair Vega Pederson, outgoing Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and incoming Portland Mayor-elect Keith Wilson, who ran on a platform of eliminating unsheltered homelessness by creating overnight shelters. The announcement said the three of them have been working closely together since Wilson won the Nov. 5 election.

According to the announcement, each government has committed $375,000 to this effort, for a combined investment of $750,000. Locations of the shelters and information on their operations will be announced in the coming weeks.

“This is a great first step in my commitment to end unsheltered homelessness in Portland, and a wonderful example of collaboration between city and county. We must treat the crisis on our streets as a crisis and move urgently to reach our goal to end unsheltered homelessness,” Wilson said.

The new shelter beds will be in addition to the existing — and growing — shelter system that provides nearly 3,000 beds every day. They are intended to ensure people have a safe and dry place to sleep throughout the winter. With a La Niña winter predicted for our region, the added winter shelter beds are in addition to hundreds more severe weather shelter beds that provide emergency support to the community on specific days and nights when the weather hits certain thresholds.

Including congregate spaces, motel-based programs, family shelters, Safe Rest Villages, larger Temporary Alternative Shelter Sites shelters, and other village-style programs, the county and city have opened nearly 30 shelter sites combined since 2020.

“We cannot solve our homelessness crisis fast enough — especially for the many people sleeping in the cold on our streets tonight,”  Vega Pederson. “These overnight beds, put in place in addition to severe weather shelter beds, are an important step in providing the respite people need and are part of the overall work we’re doing as part of the Homeless Response System to shelter and house people and prevent homelessness from occurring in the first place.” 

“This collaborative action increases our capacity to shelter Portlanders during the coldest months of the year. Our combined efforts continue to improve the ways we serve those living on our streets by addressing the immediate needs of our community while also pursuing long-term solutions to homelessness,” Wheeler said.

According to the announcement, the cross-jurisdictional Homelessness Response System is bringing together the city’s Portland Solutions team and the Joint Office of Homeless Services to open these sites as soon as possible and remain open through the winter.