Housing Multnomah Proposes Plan for Sheltering Vunerable

    Housing Multnomah is a joint initiative by Multnomah County and the City of Portland in order to combat the houseless issue in the area. On Friday, February 3rd 2023 Multnomah County chair Jessica Vega Pederson unveiled a new plan, titled Housing Multnomah Now, that would, If the proposal goes through, take three hundred people without a stable place to live and place them in a more secure place of residency. Moving people whose home’s include cars, the side of the road, and tents and tarps, into apartments funded by the initiative. The plan will cost $14 million and take course over a twelve month period.
    The plan is based on one made by members of King County in Washington State that showed success with providing places to live to the unhoused. However there is one major distinction between the two initiatives, that is: where the funds are coming from. The similar initiative in King County had major funding by large companies such as Amazon, Alaska Airlines, and various philanthropic donors. The Housing Multnomah Now plan would instead be funded, if approved, by a portion of Oregon Governor Tina Kotek’s $130 million spending plan to tackle the homeless crisis.





Image source: https://www.multco.us/johs

    This strategy is being proposed by people who have previously helped those in poverty, it’s based on actions that have succeeded in the past, and has a source of funds that has already been set aside for just this type of project . When it comes to fixing one of Oregon’s biggest emergencies, it’s important to take a logical approach with a solid plan. Otherwise you run the risk of throwing money at a problem without any real way to solve it. Housing Multnomah has proven itself in the past and seems to have a strong way to move forward. I encourage those of you who are interested to take a look at the sources below for more information on the proposal and continue to follow the story as it unfolds.

https://www.multco.us/multnomah-county/news/news-release-chair-jessica-vega-pederson-directs-new-funds-and-strategy

https://z100portland.iheart.com/featured/portland-local-news/content/2023-02-03-multnomah-county-launches-homeless-initiative/

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/homeless/seattle-launches-emergency-command-center-for-homelessness-with-fed-help/

Aaron Chapman 2/10/2023