News from the Continuum

By Sarah Owens and Michael Livingston

Prep begins for Phase 2 construction at ARCHES 2/23/19

Long anticipated Phase II construction to install a sprinkler system, showers, laundry facilities and a commercial kitchen to support the day shelter at 615 Commercial Street NE (aka the ARCHES building) got the go ahead from HUD last week.  Construction is projected to take three months.

The State of Oregon required the day shelter to be open prior to July 1, 2017, as a condition of using state homeless assistance funds for a down payment on the building, but that condition was not enforced.  The shelter did not open until July 2018, after Phase 1 construction was complete.  See "New Adult Day Shelter Finally Opens Downtown."  At that time, the Mid Willamette Valley Community Action Agency (MWVCAA), which owns the building, anticipated Phase 2 construction would be completed by October 2018.  However, construction was delayed by a number of factors, the most recent being the need to develop an excavation plan with the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde.  The City has also blamed the federal government shutdown as a factor.  See "City to Build Despite Ops Funding Gap." 

The City Council held a ho hum work session on the Downtown Homeless Solutions Task Force (DHSTF) recommendations on February 19.  No action was taken.  The Council expect to take up the recommendations during deliberations on the budget.  It's unclear how exactly that happens, especially if some, or all, of the recommendations don't make it into the City Manager's budget.  See "Bureaucratic BS Burying Good Neighbor Partnership" and "DHSTF Recs Update." 

Photo enhanced to illustrate how area might look fenced

The first two meetings of the Food and Sundries Distribution to the Homeless Community Task Force (Food Task Force) took place on February 21 and February 28.  See City press release here.  The task force is facilitated by a contractor who hasn't followed the list of discussion topics listed in the initial Work Plan Outline published on January 23.  See "Food Task Force Meeting 1."

At the second meeting, Public Works Operations Manager Mark Becktel indicated the City might again be willing to allow meals to be served in the area under the bridge -- but only if it could be properly secured by vandalism-proof fencing and a 12-14' gate.  See "Under Bridge Back On Table."  The City would have to install the fencing and presumably provide some level of maintenance (e.g., trash removal). 

While this seems to some to be a solution, it doesn't make a lot of sense, given MWVCAA has signaled its willingness to allow the use of the ARCHES building in a few months, once renovations are complete.  Under-the-bridge advocates argue that it's necessary to serve meals outside because some people cannot tolerate being indoors, but they don't know or haven't said how many of the 100 to 150 being served have that problem.  Nor is it obvious that those who do would be comfortable under the bridge once the fencing goes up, especially if there is only one way in/out. 

Marion Square Park as park, 3/2/19

When barriers went up under the bridge, meal distribution moved a block north, to the parking lot at the ARCHES building.  The move has been a disruption for The ARCHES Project consumers and staff and generated additional garbage, which the City has picked up the tab for removing.

But, the move has benefited Marion Square Park, more than one might have thought possible in such a short time, as several people who work in the area noted during the first Food Task Force meeting.  Those benefits would be at risk if the City were again to permit daily meal distribution under the bridge.

Daily meals in a single area act as an incentive to remain and/or camp in the area.  Securing the area under the bridge would not prevent camping outside the secured area, or the ills associated with camping, e.g., drug and human trafficking.  At the same time, it seems doubtful the City would consider it worth the trouble and expense to install a costly fence and gate(s) if the area's only going to be used a few hours each week.  

Under-the-bridge advocates insist that daily evening meals at a single covered location are needed to avoid people going hungry.  Yet comments made during Food Task Force meetings indicate the effect of moving meals to the uncovered parking lot of the ARCHES building has been to cut the number of meals served in half.  Union Gospel Mission (UGM) Director Dan Clem says people go to UGM when there's no meal in the parking lot.  If they don't want or are not allowed to go inside, they are given a meal bag.  Under-the-bridge advocates say the meal bags create extra garbage, but the point is that people don't have to go hungry.

Marion St Bridge camp reported Sat 2/23, gone by Sat 3/2

Salem Reporter says the Salem Police Department "POP" (“Problem-Oriented Policing”) team has begun working with the city’s code enforcers to reduce the number of derelict buildings, drug houses and illegal homeless camps in the city.  See Brynelson, T. "New Salem Police Team looks to curb repeat, low level crimes."  (22 February 2019, Salem Reporter.)

That such a partnership is quite obviously beneficial should in no way detract from our appreciation of the time (about two years) and effort that was required to forge this union.  Neighborhood associations could make a habit of asking their police reps about POP team activities in their areas.      

Retired Marion County Commissioner Janet Carlson, acting as a paid consultant to the Mid Willamette Valley Council of Governments (MWVCOG), and Jimmy Jones, MWVCAA Executive Director, advised the Mid Willamette Homeless Initiative Steering Committee last week that, despite best efforts over the last two years to support and collaborate with the 26 other counties that make up the Rural Oregon Continuum of Care (ROCC), the ROCC continued to struggle with administrative and performance issues.  They were, therefore, recommending that Salem, Marion and Polk Counties look at re-forming the local CoC, so that efforts could be concentrated locally.

Mid Willamette Homeless Initiative Steering Committee 2/28/19

Salem, Marion and Polk Counties' CoC (OR-504) merged with ROCC in 2011.  Re-forming the local CoC  would mean that Salem, Marion and Polk Counties would cease to be members of ROCC (OR-505) (aka the Balance of State CoC).  See "ROCC: Leave or Remain."

The next step is for the steering committee members (Kristin Retherford for Salem, Cathy Clark for Keizer, Tom Pessemier for Monmouth, and David Clyne for Independence) to present the recommendation to their city councils.  The Marion County Board of Commission (BOC) and Polk County Commissioner Craig Pope heard the presentation at a February 21 work session, and the full Polk County BOC is scheduled to have a work session on the question in mid-March.  "This was a mistake", said Jones, referring to the 2011 merger, but he cautioned that re-forming the local CoC would be a "generational change" -- meaning the benefits would not be immediate, but would require time and diligence to achieve.   He expressed concern about the ROCC's ability to maintain without the support of Marion and Polk Counties, but "we have to do what's best for the local homeless community", he said.