Homelessness

If signed by Gov. Kate Brown, House Bill 2006 will also make it easier for cities to allow people to sleep in cars in approved “transitional housing” parking lots.

A sweeping zoning code change intended to make it easier to open shelters across Portland reached the finish line Wednesday. The city council voted unanimously to pass the Shelter to Housing Continuum project.

Supporters of the plan say legalizing RVs and tiny homes on wheels are critical to provide low-cost housing options. But at least one prominent advocate had big concerns.

Ashland is soon opening an urban campground for unsheltered people. Homeless advocates say this is part of a trend of smaller communities welcoming alternative shelters.

Because the state of emergency will now expire before the city votes on the permanent code change, the city said it needed to be extended one more time.

For years, residents of Sandy Studios, a publicly-funded apartment complex for formerly homeless veterans in Northeast Portland, say their steady stream of complaints about the condition of the building went unheeded - until they became impossible to ignore.

According to an annual report to Congress, Washington state experienced one of the largest estimated increases in homelessness between 2019 and 2020 relative to other states in the U.S.

Medford has proposed an ordinance that would tighten the city’s camping restrictions. Homeless advocates are advising the city to reject the proposal.

Homeless service providers and law enforcement have noticed an alarming increase in the number of homeless people who have died in Coos County so far this year. Eight individuals have died since the beginning of 2021 – more than is typical for an entire year.

Never before has the housing crises in the state been so profound, making it one of the most pressing and urgent issues lawmakers will face this legislative session.