1/15/18 Minutes

Members: M. Bryant Baird, Heather Cady

Organizations: Kendra Taylor, Lindsay Bigelow and Barbara Taylor with the Kindness Closet; Dale Cardwell, Simona Cardwell, Starr, Shane, Matt Caulder, Debbie Cook and Dianne Rush with Inside Out Ministries; Warren Lund, Josh Lair, Carly Lair, Matt Madeira with Be Bold Street Ministries; Ashley Hamilton and Ken Houghton with Mid Willamette Valley Community Action Agency’s ARCHES Project; Troy Brynelson, Salem Reporter; Valerie Freeman, Salem Regional Library; Denyc Boles, Salem Health; LaDonye “Rob” Sloan, Salem Main Street Association.  

City and County Representatives: Councilor Kaser; Lt. Treven Upkes, SPD

Guests: none

The regular meeting of the CANDO Board of Directors was called to order at 6:00 p.m., on Tuesday, January 15, 2019, at the First Christian Church at 685 Marion Street NE, Salem.  The Chair and Secretary-Treasurer were present.  

The minutes of the November meeting were approved, and the agenda was amended by unanimous consent to put new business to top of agenda. Michael’s motion to approve a letter of concern about the proposed removal of trees on Division Street to create parking spaces passed unanimously.

Lt. Upkes reported that no arrests were made that morning in the highly anticipated eviction of campers under the Marion Street Bridge.  He said eight took the Northwest Human Services’ van to the West Salem Clinic for check ups. Sixty to eighty yards of solid and hazardous waste were removed, and one dog was taken for emergency vet services. The process worked well, thanks to the volunteers and service providers who had been engaged in continuous outreach for as long as the camp had been there. In response to a question where one of the campers might see about retrieving his mother’s ashes, which had been left behind, Upkes said to come down to police station.  

Building on High Street complained of

Councilor Kaser reported receiving complaints about activities in and around a building in the 600 block of High Street NE (see photo).  She also reported that Sadie Carney for the Grant neighborhood association was urging the City amend its land use process to require applicants to meet with neighborhood associations in advance.  She said there will be another work session on the Council Policy Agenda on January 23 and that “parks” is heading the City’s review policies affecting distribution of food in City parks and facilities with existing permit-holders (see SRC Chapter 94, Offenses in Parks).  Vice-chair Michael Livingston noted that CANDO had not been invited to participate in the review, and Councilor Kaser indicated she would request that CANDO be included.  

In interested citizen comments, Valerie Freeman shared information about the Public Library’s program, Salem Reads.

The board heard a presentation by Ashley Hamilton, Associate Program Director of The ARCHES Project of the Mid Willamette Valley Community Action Agency on a program of coordinated outreach to people experiencing homelessness.  The presentation included a look at the services currently available in the ARCHES Project’s day shelter, which has on average 107 consumers a day, more when temperatures are extreme and at the end of the month.

Hamilton said that the coordinated outreach program is still in the development stage.  Northwest Human services and the Mid Willamette Community Action Agency are each hiring coordinators.  She said most of the 853 chronically homeless individuals in Marion and Polk Counties who’ve been assessed by ARCHES staff or partners are living downtown and around Wallace Marine Park and are unusually vulnerable.  The plan is to focus the outreach on those individuals and engage them in preventive/maintenance services and keep them engaged, with the goal of reducing their use of emergency services. Hamilton says they also plan to create a crisis hotline for downtown businesses and residents with concerns about homeless individuals who appear to be in distress.   

There being no other business before the board, the Chair adjourned the meeting at 6:53 p.m.