Regional leaders set homelessness reduction goals
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A committee of regional leaders quietly endorsed new goals to reduce homelessness last month, giving the region firm targets for the first time in a decade.
Why it matters: Some 18,000 people were experiencing homelessness in Multnomah County as of May, a number that has climbed in recent years.
What's inside: The committee endorsed a plan to bring homelessness down by 10% in two years.
- To do that, they'll need to house more than 12,000 people in that time, per the Oregonian.
- The committee also aims to increase affordable housing, reduce the number of people becoming homeless and shorten the time it takes homeless people to find housing.
The committee — made up of local elected officials and housing experts — voted 4-1 to adopt the goals, with Portland Mayor Keith Wilson casting the sole "no" vote.
- Wilson called the goals a "good starting point," but said the committee was "not moving at the pace that the emergency needs," per the Oregonian.
How it works: The goals are possible, officials said, largely because of the county's relatively new data collection system that was put in place early last year.
- "That's never existed before," Jillian Schoene, head of the Multnomah County Homelessness Response System, told the O. "Now we have the tools in place to make truly data-driven decisions."
Yes, but: The city of Portland has recently started more aggressive enforcement of 120-day stay limits at some of its long-term shelters, forcing some residents back onto the streets.
What's next: The new goals are expected to be incorporated into Multnomah County's homelessness dashboard soon.