Owning a Home Without Losing the Neighborhood: How Community Land Trusts Can Protect Portland

By: Jayden Brannan

Portland is a town that people fall in love with, but then struggle to remain within. The rising cost of housing is a problem that affects not only individuals but also changes the fabric of our communities, displacing long-time Portlanders. The effect of making housing a commodity to make money from, rather than a place to live, is that there is no longer stability, which affects us all, whether we are renters, homeowners, or simply concerned individuals who want a future within our town.

Community Land Trusts (CLTs) provide a different solution that is proven to work in Portland. The way CLTs keep the land in the hands of the community means that homeownership isn't linked with resale, meaning that when people buy a home, it isn't necessarily an investment that will be sold later. The people own their residence, but the land is preserved for the future. This is more than a solution for affordable housing; it is preservation of the neighborhood.

What is particularly valuable about CLTs is that they have a long-term effect. This is because, as compared to short-term solutions, they ensure that a community is always affordable in the long run, while the people are also given a voice in the development of the land in which they reside. An investment in CLTs means investing in people, not displacement.

If, as a citizen, you are concerned with making Portland a liveable place for the people who make the city what it is, learning more, or supporting local initiatives to address affordable housing, is important. Even a click helps. 

Learn more or support long-term housing solutions in Portland here:
https://joinpdx.org/get-involved/ways-to-give/

“A Tent Isn’t a Home: Why Stability Matters More Than Temporary Fixes”

 

“A Tent Isn’t a Home: Why Stability Matters More Than Temporary Fixes”

By Jayden Brannan

11/30/2025

When people talk about homelessness, the focus often falls to tents. Tents in parks, tents near freeways, tents on sidewalks. But a tent isn't the real problem; it's part of a symptom of something much larger: a lack of stable, safe, long-term housing options.

It's easy to walk past a tent and think it's a choice or a lifestyle. But most people who are living outside want the same things the rest of us want: a door that locks, a warm bed, and a place where they actually feel safe. The reality is, the housing market and cost of living-in conjunction with a lack of accessible resources-push people into survival mode long before a tent ever shows up.

The problem isn't that people don't want help; it's that help is not designed for them.

Too often, the default proposed solution is a shelter, but shelters don't work for everyone. Some have strict rules; others ban pets, open only certain hours, or insist on crowded sleeping arrangements that are unsafe. Others can't accommodate people with partners, jobs that run late, or chronic health conditions.

It is not that people do not want support; rather, the available support does not fit their reality.

A Tent Might Give Someone Cover—but It Doesn’t Give Them Stability

Stability doesn't come from a nylon wall and a zipper. Stability comes from having:

A place where you are not forced to move every few days.

A home that isn't in jeopardy of being swept or thrown away

A space for rest, privacy, safety, and recovery

A chance to think beyond the next 24 hours

Without those things, it's nearly impossible to apply for a job, stay healthy, manage trauma, or plan for the future.

Stable Housing Works—We've Already Seen It

One thing we do know is that long-term housing solutions like Community Land Trusts, supportive housing, and affordable permanent units make a real difference. When people are given stability first, their health improves, they use fewer emergency services, and they're more likely to stay housed.

Housing should not be something a person has to "earn." It's the foundation people need in order to rebuild.

We Can Do Better—And We’ll All Be Better for It

Homelessness is not a personal failing; it's the result of systems, policies, and rising costs that leave people behind. When our communities are stable, safe, and supported, we all benefit.

If we stop looking at tents as the problem—and start looking at the lack of stable housing—we can move toward solutions that actually change lives. The following article breaks it down in simple terms for anyone looking to learn more about long-term housing solutions

If you care about a safer, healthier Portland, supporting long-term housing solutions is one of the most powerful ways to make a difference. Even learning a little more about how these systems work can help push our city toward real change.

If you want to dig deeper or support solutions that actually work, here’s a great place to start:

https://joinpdx.org/get-involved/ways-to-give/

Portland State Needs to Move Football Games to Providence Park

 Portland State University’s football program has always carried pride, history, and potential but the game-day experience hasn’t kept pace with the rest of the city. While Portland continues to grow, PSU football remains tucked away in a stadium experience that doesn’t reflect the energy, accessibility, or visibility the team deserves. Moving home games to Providence Park wouldn’t just elevate the program it would strengthen the PSU community and deepen its connection with the city itself.

Why PSU Needs Providence Park:
Portland is a sports-loving city. From the Timbers to the Thorns to the Winterhawks, fans show up when the atmosphere is exciting, accessible, and part of the city’s identity. Providence Park offers exactly that something PSU football could benefit from tremendously.

Increase Visibility and Attendance:
Providence Park sits in the heart of the city, surrounded by public transit, local businesses, and foot traffic. Hosting PSU games there would draw more students, alumni, and Portland residents. A central, iconic location naturally boosts turnout and helps build a true home-field advantage.

Improve the Game-Day Experience:
The stadium’s professional-grade facilities from seating to lighting to concessions would elevate the experience for players and fans. When the environment matches the level of effort athletes put in, the culture around the program grows stronger and more supportive.

Build Stronger Community ties:
Playing in a major city stadium bridges PSU with the broader Portland sports community. It gives local families, businesses, and longtime fans an easy way to engage with the program. A game at Providence Park becomes more than a football event it becomes part of Portland’s weekend heartbeat.

Boost Recruiting and Program Growth:
High school athletes want to play where the energy is real. Providence Park sends a message: PSU football is competitive, ambitious, and invested in its athletes. That impression matters. A better venue helps bring in more talent, which strengthens the team and raises the university’s profile.

Support Sustainability and Access:
Because Providence Park is downtown, fans can walk, bike, or take TriMet, reducing the environmental impact of game days. This aligns with PSU’s values of sustainability and accessibility two pillars of the campus identity.

While a stadium isn’t the heart of the football program, it shapes the culture and excitement surrounding it. PSU athletes work too hard to play in front of half-empty seats at a location that many people struggle to reach. The university and the city both benefit when fans can show up easily, cheer loudly, and feel connected to their team.

Call to Action:
It’s time for PSU to take this step. Students, alumni, and supporters can encourage the university to pursue a partnership with Providence Park. Show up for conversations, share your support online, or speak with campus leaders. Every voice helps push toward a future where Portland State football competes on a stage worthy of its athletes, its community, and its city.

PSU deserves a true home-field advantage and Providence Park is the place to build it.

Portland State Needs More Support for the Football Program

 At Portland State, being a Viking is bigger than football it’s about pride, community, and representing the city we call home. But just like a neighborhood needs shared spaces to thrive, a university needs strong support for its athletic programs, especially football. Right now, PSU football is fighting hard every season, yet the level of support doesn’t match the work, dedication, and potential of the team. A stronger football program doesn’t just help the players; it strengthens the entire campus community.

Why PSU Football Needs Support:

Portland State faces real challenges: limited funding, low visibility, and a game-day experience that doesn’t match the heart of the athletes who suit up every week. More support from students, alumni, and the city can change that.

Build Community Pride:
A strong football culture brings people together. When students, staff, families, and alumni show up and get loud, it creates a campus identity everyone can stand behind. A winning environment starts with a supportive community.

Boost Student Experience:
Game days give students a chance to unwind, connect, and feel like they’re part of something bigger. A successful football program energizes campus life, boosts morale, and helps create memories that last long after graduation.

Strengthen Portland’s Sports Culture:
Portland is already a sports city. Pairing that energy with PSU football builds a bridge between the university and the rest of Portland. When the team succeeds, the city wins too. PSU should feel like a hometown team not a hidden one.

Enhance Safety, Health, and Opportunity:
A well-supported program provides better facilities, safer equipment, and more opportunities for student-athletes. It helps us train harder, recover better, and compete at a level that reflects our effort.

Promote Diversity and Representation:
PSU football brings together players from different states, cultures, and backgrounds. Supporting the program means supporting a diverse group of young men building discipline, leadership, and brotherhood qualities that strengthen the university’s values.

These improvements aren’t just “sports upgrades.” They shape the culture of the school. A stronger football program builds connections, boosts school spirit, and creates a sense of belonging for every student not just the athletes.

Call to Action:
Portland State needs more support for its football program, and the community can help make it happen. Show up to games. Share the schedule. Wear the green and white. Advocate for better resources, better fields, and better investment in the athletes who represent this university with pride.

Every voice, every fan, and every bit of support helps build a program worthy of the players who give everything on the field.

PSU deserves a football culture that matches the heart of its athletes and together, we can make it happen.

How Mutual Aid Bridges Gaps and Creates Safer Communities

by: Fiona Avocado

How Mutual Aid Bridges Gaps and Creates Safer Communities
by Jessica Hendrix

At its heart, mutual aid is simple: people in a community voluntarily share resources, skills, and care to meet each other’s needs. It’s rooted in solidarity rather than charity. Where charities often follow top‑down rules, eligibility forms, and institutional routines, mutual aid is horizontal and grassroots; neighbors organizing directly to empower one another and respond to what’s needed now.

Why this matters for people experiencing homelessness

Formal services are essential, but they can be hard to access. Hours, ID requirements, transportation, and mistrust of institutions all keep many people from getting help. Mutual aid breaks down those barriers. Because it is low‑barrier, nonjudgmental, and immediate, mutual aid reaches people who are missed by traditional systems. Peer relationships and street‑level outreach build trust in ways agencies sometimes cannot, opening doors to services when people are ready and providing practical items that make day‑to‑day survival possible: food, warm clothes, sleeping gear, harm‑reduction supplies, and help with transit or appointments. Emotional support, accompaniment, and referrals from someone you already trust can be the difference between falling through the cracks and getting connected to housing, healthcare, or benefits.

What mutual aid looks like on the ground

• Community fridges and free pantries: accessible 24/7 food with no eligibility checks—take what you need.  
• Street outreach teams: volunteers bring supplies, information, harm‑reduction kits, and referrals directly to encampments and public spaces.  
• Volunteer meal deliveries and care packages: reaching people who can’t travel to shelters or soup kitchens.  
• Pop‑up distributions: warm coats, sleeping bags, tarps, tents, toiletries, naloxone, condoms and emergency contraception—offered in a take‑what‑you‑need setup.  
• Peer support and accompaniment: trusted people who navigate appointments, shelters, and benefit systems alongside someone.

One mutual aid group I’m part of collects supplies year‑round and brings them to houseless encampments. We hand out hot food and warm drinks, water, coats, sleeping bags, hand warmers, tarps, toiletries, blankets, tents, gloves, hats, harm‑reduction kits, naloxone, emergency contraception, and more. Everything is set up so anyone can take what they need; no forms, no judgment. Delivering aid on the street removes transportation barriers and sidesteps discriminatory intake practices that can exclude people from formal programs. Most importantly, it creates a space where people feel seen, cared for, and safe.

by: 

eviltasteschalky

Why mutual aid matters, 
and what it isn’t

Mutual aid fills urgent gaps: immediate nourishment, weather protection, lifesaving supplies, and human connection. It doesn’t replace the need for long‑term housing, clinical care, or well‑funded public systems, those remain essential. But mutual aid keeps people safer in the short term and builds the trust and relationships that help connect people to lasting supports. Think of it as a mycelial network of care: small, interconnected acts that strengthen the whole community.

Get Invovled

If your neighborhood doesn’t have a group, consider finding one or starting one. Mutual aid is not an organization, it’s community coming together. When we share time, supplies, and care without judgment, we meet immediate needs and help one another to survive and thrive. That is what community should be. 

Read more about Mutual Aid here.

Solutions to Houselessness

 Homelessness is a common site around us.

In our cites, our streets, our parks, everywhere and always a constant challenge. But it doesn't have to be there are solutions out there, constantly growing, constantly improving. Homelessness has seen some challenges and there has been an uptick but there has also been an increase in support for this subjected community, through the help of tiny homes and land grants.

Eden Village is one of these such programs, started back in August 2018 in Springfield, MO. It had large success during the rising of its first community. Offering services, like, psychiatrist, nurses, case managers, Mental Health Provider.

On top of giving those in the newly constructed communities, homes and pathways to rehabilitation, but it also gives them an opportunity to break a cycle that a lot of those in similar situations, by filling in that gap in reaching the homeless with support and care. 

If you'd like to learn more about this amazing program and everything they do Click here to learn about Eden Village: Eden Village: Tiny Home Communities for the Chronically Homeless

Portland Needs More Shared Community Spaces

 In Portland, finding a home isn’t just about shelter; it’s about belonging to a neighborhood. Yet many of our neighborhoods lack spaces where residents can gather, connect, and support each other. Community gardens, workshops, and parks aren’t just nice extras; they’re essential for building stronger, safer, and more resilient communities in our city.

Why Portland Needs Social Spaces:
Portland faces growing challenges: rising housing costs, increasing density, and social isolation in many neighborhoods. Shared spaces provide solutions:

1. Foster Connection: Neighborhood gardens, playgrounds, and community centers help neighbors meet, build friendships, and strengthen Portland’s social fabric.

2. Boost Health and Well-Being: Parks and recreational spaces give residents places to exercise, relax, and reduce stress—vital in a city where many live in smaller units.

3. Enhance Safety: Active, well-used communal areas promote vigilance and engagement, creating safer streets and neighborhoods.

4. Encourage Sustainability: Community gardens, green spaces, and eco-friendly public areas showcase Portland’s commitment to environmental stewardship.

5. Support Diversity and Inclusion: Thoughtfully designed spaces welcome residents of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds, reflecting the city’s values of equity and inclusivity.

While these spaces aren’t homes themselves, they strengthen the neighborhoods where people live. Portland residents benefit from communities where neighbors know each other, collaborate, and care, especially as transitional and affordable housing developments expand.

Call to Action:
Portland needs more shared spaces, and we can help make it happen. Support local initiatives, volunteer for community gardens, or advocate for parks and community centers in your neighborhood. Every effort helps create a city where residents connect, thrive, and belong.

Does Rent Control Work? What the Evidence Really Shows

 

 Jonathan Smith 
12/2/25

As rents rise and housing affordability becomes a global flashpoint, rent control, or rent freezes, is often sold as an easy solution. Cap the price, help tenants, problem solved. But a major 2024 report from the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) asks a harder question: What are the real effects of rent control?

After compiling just under 200 academic studies, the report’s answer is clear: rent control delivers short-term benefits for a lucky few, but causes long-term harm for the broader housing market.

Where Rent Control Helps

Rent control lowered rents for those units that were regulated. This led to tenants who already occupied them being the beneficiaries of below-market rent. Unfortunately, the positives end there, and the overall effects do not.

Where Rent Control Backfires

Reduction in Supply of Rental Homes – Most studies show landlords respond to capped rents by selling or converting their properties. Fewer rentals, tighter markets, and fewer options for everyone else.

Discouraging of New Construction – Developers avoid building in markets where returns are artificially suppressed. Over time, the shortage of housing grows worse.

Misallocation of Housing – Because supply is fixed and demand isn’t, rent-controlled systems create waiting lists, hoarding, and mismatches between tenants and units.

Rise of Rents in Uncontrolled Units – When demand spills over into the unregulated market, prices spike for everyone else.

Pressure on Landlords Toward Selling – Many markets experience a shift from rental housing to owner-occupied housing, reducing the long-term rental stock.

The mechanisms of this process are simple. The capped rent reduces incentives to build and offer rental housing. As the number of rental properties being offered falls, demand rises, creating worse scarcity. Tenants that were able to start with the cheap units cling to them, blocking the natural flow of the housing market. Finally, developers avoid cities with difficult rental policies.

The increase in rent is a real issue, one that is hurting many Americans. However, freezing the rent is a remedy that is too simple, a remedy that would do a lot more harm than help. As rent-freezing policies become more popular at the ballot box, everyone should look at the real effects before they buy into the glamour that these types of policies offer.

To learn more visit the link below

https://iea.org.uk/publications/rent-control-does-it-work/?utm_source 

Shared Roof: A Model for Community-Based Housing Development

By: Aiden Moreno

    Housing affordability has reached crisis levels in the United States. There is a dichotomy between rent burdened residents and homeowners, but what if there was a way that homeowners can help reduce housing costs for the community? In the video below, I explore a novel new type of development in Seattle that attempts to do just that.

Want to learn more about Shared Roof? See The Urbanist's article here: https://www.theurbanist.org/2024/04/24/phinney-ridge-apartment-complex/

     If you'd like to learn more about novel housing solutions, the article below includes information about Seattle's new Social Housing Developer, modeled after Europe's social housing. The City of Portland is currently consulting with the Seattle group, and if you would like to see your own version in Portland, write your city government!

https://www.theurbanist.org/2025/02/13/social-housing-prop-1a-prevails/

 

Cold Fronts and Cold Streets: Winter Homelessness in PDX

By Nina Bockius

November 30, 2025

As the winter months approach in Portland, the temperature begins to drop. Most of us are heading inside, turning up the heat, grabbing an extra blanket, or cozying up into bed. But for thousands of people living unsheltered in Portland, winter doesn’t just mean discomfort it is a means of survival. The winters in Portland are wet, windy, and unpredictable.

Even with shelters, there aren’t enough beds for everyone. Many individuals can’t or won’t use them because of safety concerns, their stuff isn’t allowed, or their animals are not welcome. Instead, they stay outside, making camps out of tents, tarps, cardboard, and whatever else they can find.

Imagine what it would feel like waking up damp and freezing cold and still having to walk to find a meal or use a restroom. That is the reality for way too many of the individuals living on the streets in Portland.

This isn’t just a “homelessness problem.” It is a public health crisis, a moral issue, and something our city needs to act on.

Why does it matter?

Because people shouldn’t have to risk their lives just to sleep. Because we can create solutions that actually make a difference, more beds in the shelters, better resources for those who feel unsafe in them, and real support for the individual’s experiencing homelessness.

It matters because they are humans too, they deserve to feel taken care of and supported. No one should have to risk their life because they do not have a warm place to sleep.

If you want to learn more about how to help or get involved, click below:

https://www.streetroots.org/news/2022/11/16/winter-resource-guide-where-get-help

Breaking the Cycle : Understanding the Foster-Care to Homeless Pipeline

Youth Homelessness is not random. It often follow a predictable pipeline for young people aging out of the foster care system. Here are the key things that I want readers to understand: 

 1.) Many foster youth lose housing stability the moment they turn 18. 

When a support system ends abruptly, young people are left to figure out housing, work, and adulthood with little guidance. This sudden cutoff is one of the biggest predictors of homelessness.

2.) Trauma makes stability harder to achieve. 

Foster kids often carry trauma from early experiences or from moving through multiple placements. Trauma affects emotional regulation, trust, and long term planning. Which makes navigating housing systems even more difficult. 

3.) Housing is not just physical, its emotional safety. 

a stable home provides routine, and a sense of being cared for. Many foster youth age out without a lasting support network. Leaving them at the exact stage when most young adults rely heavily on family. 

4.) Prevention is cheaper and more humane than crisis Reponses. 

Programs that offer transitional housing mentorship, and financial support cost far less than an emergency shelter. Investing earlier prevents harm rather than reacting to it. 

5.) Community support make a real difference. 

Volunteers, mentors, and community organizations help fill the gaps the system leaves behind. Providing essentials or simply showing up consistently, stable relationships reduce youth homeless rates. 

6.) A just future means no young person ages out alone. 

My hope is for a future where every foster youth receives long term guidance, stable housing options, and the emotional support they deserve. No eighteen year old should be expected to survive adulthood without help. 

My hope is for a future where every foster youth receives long term guidance, stable housing, and emotional support they deserve. No eighteen year old should be expected to survive adulthood without help. 

 For those who want to learn more about the foster care to homelessness pipeline here is a helpful resource from the National Alliance to End Homelessness https://endhomelessness.org/overview/

Why Community Land Trusts Are the Affordable Housing Solution We Need, and Why You Should Care?

Housing in many U.S. cities is spiraling out of reach, but there’s a powerful, proven tool that not enough people know about: Community Land Trusts (CLTs). Unlike traditional real estate, CLTs separate land ownership from building ownership. The nonprofit trust owns the land, and homeowners own the structures, paying a long-term ground lease and agreeing to a resale formula that keeps the home permanently affordable (National League of Cities, 2021). 

What doesthat mean in real life? Homes in CLTs stay affordable for generations. Even if neighborhood values skyrocket, CLT homes aren’t flipped for profit, they remain anchored to the community (Grounded Solutions Network, 2024). CLTs aren’t just good for homeowners, they’re good for neighborhoods. By protecting residents from displacement in gentrifying areas, CLTs help maintain community stability and social cohesion. Governance structures include residents, local leaders, and nonprofits, giving people a real voice in shaping their community (Network for Philadelphia, 2022). 

Even in economic downturns, CLT homeowners are more stable than market homeowners and feel a stronger sense of security (Urban Institute, 2023). Some argue CLTs limit wealth-building due to resale caps, that’s true, but this trade-off prioritizes collective stability over speculative gain (Brookings Institution, 2021). Why you should care: If you’re worried about rising housing costs, for your neighbors, your community, or even your own taxes, supporting CLTs helps build lasting affordability. It ensures long-term residents aren’t priced out and that public subsidies have lasting impact (Milwaukee CLT, 2024). For the next generation, our children, or your neighbor’s kids, CLTs offer security, belonging, and a stake in their future. They’re more than homes; they’re roots. Want to learn more or help build one where you live? 

Click here to discover how Community Land Trusts work and how to support them . 

Sources (for reference):

National League of Cities. (2021). What city leaders need to know about Community Land Trusts. 

Grounded Solutions Network. (2024). Community Land Trusts. Network for Philadelphia. (2022). Fact Sheet: Community Land Trusts. Urban Institute. (2023). Do Community Land Trusts Improve Resident Outcomes? Brookings Institution. (2021). Community Land Trusts: An old-school innovation with new-school applications. Milwaukee CLT. (2024). Why CLTs?

Funding Failure: Portland's $14.7M Budget for Cruelty

 

Jamie Partridge, member of the Democratic Socialists of America, listens to public testimony at the City Council meeting.
Eli Imadali / OPB

By Abby Watson

A recent, contentious City Council meeting revealed a deep and growing divide in Portland’s leadership, a chasm created by Mayor Wilson’s failed strategy to address homelessness in Portland. The fight wasn’t even about eliminating his controversial sweeps program; it was a modest proposal to cut $4.3 million from its $14.7 million annual budget. $4.3 million that was meant to be reallocated to direct aid and housing programs, like housing grants, food assistance, and support services. But even that was too much for the Mayor, who fought to protect every dollar for his “Impact Reduction Program”: a program that does not reduce impacts, but rather displaces the unhoused.

The core of the conflict is simple: other city leaders are finally stating publicly that the Mayor’s strategy is both harmful and a colossal waste of money. As Councilor Mitch Green stated, these sweeps are “not only ineffective, they are counterproductive,” adding that they “layer trauma on top of trauma, and they lead to more deaths on our streets.” Councilor Candace Avalos was just as blunt, noting the city is “spending millions and millions” to move people block to block without addressing the real issue.

This public, bitter division at City Hall is the inevitable result of Mayor Wilson’s insular, unilateral strategy that actively excluded community and expert voices. When a Mayor designs multi-million dollar systems, from unwanted shelters to traumatic sweeps, without a shred of meaningful collaboration, the result is a city at war with itself. This desperate budget fight is a symptom of a failed partnership, one that the Mayor refused to build. This is the inevitable outcome when leaders are forced to beg for compassion in a public forum because they were never invited to the table in the first place.

The Mayor got his way. The proposal to cut his sweeps budget failed. The city will continue to spend $14.7 million to displace its most vulnerable residents. This is Mayor Wilson’s choice: to fund a revolving door of trauma.

But while Mayor Wilson chooses to exclude the unhoused from his plan, you can choose to support them directly. Click here to support Street Roots, the newspaper that gives the unhoused of Portland a voice and income with dignity. 

Stable Housing, Healthy Lives: Why Affordability Matters

 By: Alisa Isler

Imagine trying to focus on work, school, or even sleep while worrying about losing your home. Every noise outside could be an eviction notice. Every paycheck feels like a race against rent. Housing insecurity isn’t just about where someone sleeps; it’s about whether they can live without constant fear.

A recent study by Chen and colleagues found that when housing becomes more stable and affordable, people’s health and lives improve. Several programs provide tangible benefits to individuals facing housing insecurity, including:

• Eviction moratoriums give families time to recover from unexpected hardships without losing their homes.

• Emergency rent assistance helps cover a tough month before it spirals into homelessness.

• Long-term rental subsidies, such as Section 8 vouchers, enable families to remain rooted in their communities, providing years of stability rather than just weeks or months.

When families have a safe and affordable place to live, they can focus on healing, learning, and growth. Children do better in school. Adults are healthier and more productive. Neighborhoods are safer, stronger, and more connected.

Housing insecurity isn’t just an individual problem; it affects entire communities. Frequent moves disrupt schools, workplaces, and neighborhood networks. When people are forced to relocate constantly, communities lose trust and resilience.

Supporting policies and programs that keep housing affordable benefits everyone. Small actions add up: advocating for fair rent laws, donating to local housing nonprofits, or volunteering your time can make a real difference.

When housing is stable, people thrive. Families grow stronger. Communities become healthier. And all of us benefit from a society where everyone has a safe place to call home.

Learn more: Association of Promoting Housing Affordability and Stability With Improved Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review — Chen et al., JAMA Network Open (2022)

Stability Through Support: How Coaching Transforms Veterans Lives

Jonathan Smith

Have you ever seen a homeless veteran and wondered how those that should be the most honored in our society are too often those that must resort to living on the streets?

For many veterans, transitioning from military service to civilian life is quite the challenge, as they are often confronted with the tough obstacle of finding meaningful employment that matches their skills and experience For some, the lack of guidance, coaching, or resources can lead to underemployment or even instability in housing. 

A 2022 study, A Randomized Controlled Trial of an Employment Program for Veterans Transitioning from the Military, shows that structured employment support through counseling and coaching can make a measurable difference

Researchers examined the National Career Coach Program (NCCP), which focuses on in-person training, personalized coaching, financial incentives, and job-search resources.

Researchers studied 208 transitioning service members, many with service-connected disabilities, comparing two approaches:

• Local Community Resources (LCR): The standard support veterans might typically access, such as state and federal vocational programs.
  
  

• National Career Coach Program (NCCP): A structured program combining in-person training, personalized coaching, financial incentives, and job-search resources.

The goal was simple: see which approach helped veterans find and sustain paid employment while improving overall health and well-being over a two-year period.

The findings were clear: veterans who received intensive coaching through NCCP not only found jobs more quickly but also sustained them longer and earned significantly more.

• Employment: 95% of NCCP participants found paid work, compared to 83% in the standard support group.
  
  

• Income: NCCP participants earned an average of $2,568 per month versus $1,865 for the standard group—roughly $17,000 more over two years. 

These results demonstrate that once veterans have access to personalized support that translates their military experience into civilian skills, they can thrive both financially and personally.

The path from service to stability shouldn’t be one veterans walk alone. Programs like NCCP prove that with the right support, every veteran can thrive. It’s up to us to make sure those opportunities exist.

A Randomized Controlled Trial of an Employment Program for Veterans Transitioning from the Military: Two-Year Outcomes - PMC 

Portland's Shelter Plan: Built for Sweeps, Not for People

Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB

By Abby Watson

For unhoused Portlanders in recovery, 280 new, dedicated shelter beds are on the way. A recent OPB report detailing the new shelter notes that this is the latest, concrete step in Mayor Wilson's ambitious 1,500-bed plan. It also marks a significant new strategy for the city, which is stepping in to provide services historically managed (and, in the Mayor's view, mismanaged) by Multnomah County.

But here lies a paradox: for a city with thousands of people living unhoused, these new shelters have nightly vacancy rates of up to 80%. This outcome isn't surprising. It's what happens when the City and Mayor Wilson design services without consulting the people who are supposed to use them. A recent poll cited in the same OPB article of unhoused people in Portland made it clear they overwhelmingly prefer options like "tiny home villages, motels, and RVs" to the Mayor's traditional cot shelters.

Mayor Wilson asserts that this is not a failure but his strategy; he wants "hundreds of empty beds every night". Why? Because this system of 1,500 shelter beds relies on having empty beds to "enforce community standards", Mayor Wilson's way of openly stating his intent to enforce Portland's anti-camping policies. This paints a clearer picture of the motivations behind providing 1,500 shelter beds that many don't want; they are a legal tool to justify sweeping unhoused populations off the streets. Under the law, unhoused people approached by law enforcement must either enter a shelter if a bed is available or be cited and fined. If they don't pay the fine and miss court, they could face incarceration.

The overnight shelters Mayor Wilson is opening in Portland are expensive revolving doors that force the unhoused out of sight rather than provide housing opportunities. The city and county are focused on temporary mat shelters. But their own partners, such as Do Good Multnomah, know that the real solution is in their bridge housing and pod village programs. 

Click here to see the proven, dignified housing solutions Do Good Multnomah is already building.