News from the Continuum

By Sarah Owens and Michael Livingston

Bench tent on Commercial Street, north of Court Street, wk of 9/23

August and September 2019 saw concerted law enforcement action to uproot unauthorized camps and car camps, and prevent their re-establishment in area parks.  Police have denied that the timing and concentration of the actions were intended to influence public opinion on the need for Sit-Lie, Jr. aka the Sidewalk Behavior Ordinance, which bans camping and leaving unattended property in public spaces and, most controversially, makes it illegal to sit or lie on sidewalks between 7a and 9p. See Bach, J. and Radnovich, C.  "Recent evictions, police activity could end decades of homeless camps in Wallace Marine Park."  (15 September 2019, Statesman Journal.)  Brynelson, T. "City cuts back more access to Cascades Gateway Park"  (25 September 2019, Salem Reporter.)

Despite prior agreements to coordinate with area homeless services providers, law enforcement did not coordinate and did not even provide advance notice that the actions would be taking place, which obviously limited providers' ability to respond effectively to the sudden increase in demand for services.  New commitments to coordinate have been made in the wake of the clean ups.  See Bach, J. "Homeless camp sweeps coming to these parts of Salem in October."  (29 September 2019, Statesman Journal.)

The clean ups have forced some campers into downtown, but not as many as expected, according to Salem police officer Darren Mumey, who told CANDO in September that he didn't know where the other displaced persons might have gone. 

All the above comes as the City Manager reports progress toward the City's "Safe Community" goal as a result of learning from FEMA how to communicate effectively during emergencies and disasters.

"Safe Community" -- could the irony be any greater?  Could current circumstances make it any clearer that the City does not view the people living in its streets as "community", much less "safe community"?  Or that significant disruptions to their living situations don't require "effective communications" with Salem Housing Authority and other partners like the Mid-Willamette Community Action Agency or Northwest Human Services?  Could the City Manager's Office be any more tone deaf?

Sadly, in the past six weeks, these cleanups and the rancorous debate over Sit-Lie, Jr. have completely overshadowed the efforts of area leaders' steady but relatively undramatic efforts to negotiate separation from the Rural Oregon Continuum of Care (ROCC) and re-form a functional regional CoC.

There was another meeting of CoC "stakeholders" on September 19, hosted by Independence City Manager Tom Pessemier and Monmouth City Manager Scott McClure, at the Polk County Fire District #1 station in Independence.

Jan Calvin, consultant to the Mid-Willamette Valley Council of Governments (MWVCOG), shared the latest developments, including the latest "timeline" for implementation and a draft charter for the Development Council, which has been formed to oversee the creation of the new CoC.

The first meeting of the Development Council (DC) was held the following week, on September 24, at the MWVCOG office on High Street.  If you think the DC looks like an expanded version of the Mid-Willamette Homeless Initiative Steering Committee, you're right.   

 Council clockwise from left: Jan Calvin, Cathy Clark, Tom Pessemier, Colm Willis, Rhonda Wolf, Dan Clem, Lyle Mordhorst, Scott McClure, Jimmy Jones, Sean O'Day, Janet Carlson, Denise Van Dyke, Kristin Retherford, Julie Conn-Johnson, Chuck Bennett (Chris Hoy on phone)

In addition to reps from Salem, Keizer, Independence, Monmouth and Marion County, the Development Council will have reps from Polk County (Lyle Mordhurst), the Salem-Keizer School District (Julie Conn-Johnson), the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde (not yet identififed), the Mid-Willamette Community Action Agency (Jimmy Jones), United Way (Rhonda Wolf), and Union Gospel Mission (Dan Clem).  The DC determined at this first meeting to call the new regional CoC the "Mid-Willamette Valley Homeless Alliance." 

And here it must again be observed that, even as there is this momentous Homeless Alliance forming with the purpose and intent of implementing the most effective, evidence-based policies and practices available to address a burgeoning crisis in the community, the City of Salem is pulling in the opposite direction with its anti-homeless "Sidewalk Behavior Ordinance" -- and no one on the DC dare say anything about it, least of all those who understand best that enactment will only make things worse.  That's how good, and bad, things are right now in the continuum.