OPB’s First Look: Homelessness policy in Pendleton

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Good morning, Northwest.

In Pendleton, the issue of homelessness has permeated the city council race, and leading candidates have vastly different approaches to solving it.

Antonio Sierra reports on how homelessness has divided the small Eastern Oregon city, its residents and the race that could determine its future.

Meanwhile, about 250 miles west, Bryce Dole reports on the slate of candidates for elected positions in Salem, including the city’s mayor.

Here’s your First Look at Thursday’s news.

— Chrissy Booker

Top story

Homelessness becomes focal point in Pendleton City Council race

A rise in visible homelessness has drawn local backlash to some social services in Pendleton, like the Salvation Army’s offering of free hot meals in its large parking lot. Some residents want to ban new services in the downtown area altogether.

“They’ve closed their doors to the homeless,” said Dane Lyle Scholl as he was waiting for lunch. He sleeps in a tent most nights and has been cited by city police multiple times for illegal camping.

The question of how to address the Eastern Oregon city’s growing homeless crisis has supercharged next week’s city council race in a city that sometimes has struggled to attract candidates at all.

Five seats — a controlling portion of the council — all have multiple candidates in an election season where homelessness policy has become a core issue. Whoever wins will have to deal with dueling pressures in a city with about 17,000 residents. (Antonio Sierra)

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3 things to know

• The man beaten by a Clackamas County sheriff’s deputy on Sunday was experiencing a mental health crisis, according to the man’s mother. Footage of the incident was captured on body cameras and shared by the sheriff’s office, while bystander footage circulated widely on social media. (Holly Bartholomew)
• Voters will decide next week on a slate of candidates for elected positions in Salem, including who will earn the top job governing Oregon’s second-largest city. The mayor’s race in particular has become increasingly partisan. (Bryce Dole)
• Two lawsuits filed over the past week allege the drinking water systems that serve more than a quarter of a million Willamette Valley residents are being harmed by a federal agency that says it’s trying to help threatened fish. (Courtney Sherwood)

Northwest headlines

• Deschutes County Commission races bring in over $1M in fundraising (Kathryn Styer Martínez)
• About 12% of Oregon voters have cast ballots week ahead of primary election (Mia Maldonado, Oregon Capital Chronicle)
• Bandon superintendent and two board members resign after months of pushback (Jane Vaughan, JPR)
• Oregon doctor who helped ship take care of passengers with hantavirus is isolated in Nebraska medical unit (AP)

Listen in on OPB’s daily conversation

“Think Out Loud” airs at noon and 8 p.m. weekdays on OPB Radio, opb.org and the OPB News app. Today’s planned topics (subject to change):

• First Schnitzer Prize of the West awarded to Shoshone leader of restoration project on Idaho, Utah border
• Mining operation could be coming to Baker County
• Evaluating wildfire risk in Oregon and Washington

One more look

OPB politics team breaks down the 2026 May primary

Election Day is less than a week away. Do you know where your ballot is?

In this video, the OPB politics team breaks down what you need to know about voting and major issues on the ballot in Oregon this primary season. (Andrew Theen, Dirk VanderHart, Lauren Dake, Alex Zielinski, Bryce Dole, Joey Lovato and Jennifer Ng)

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