Latest news with #JessicaVegaPederson
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
How Multnomah County budget cuts would threaten homelessness peer support program
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Multnomah County is currently in the midst of its budget process. County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson's $4 billion proposal includes big investments in community safety and health, but also reduced funding for a number of homeless services amid a $77 million shortfall. Among those services that could be eliminated is the Old Town Inreach Program (OTIP). Started in 2022 by Scott Kerman of Blanchet House, OTIP pairs people experiencing homelessness with so-called peer support specialists – who have been through it themselves – connecting folks to services they need. OTIP is now a partnership with six Old Town social service providers. Operated by the Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon, it currently receives $900,000 from Multnomah County. Kerman and Katie O'Brien from Rose Haven – another OTIP partner – joined Eye on Northwest Politics to talk their efforts to save a program they say is working on the streets of Portland's Old Town. Watch the full interview in the video above. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Multnomah County launches by-name database for tracking homeless population
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Multnomah County has launched its long-awaited count of the region's homeless population — with each person tracked by name. The county's — formerly known as the — is now able track those who have stayed in a shelter, met with a street outreach worker, signed up for housing services or visited local day centers. 'Ticking time bomb': Oregon lawmakers consider funds for Cascadia-ready Columbia Boulevard bridge This information will be posted to the county's every month in order to provide the most up-to-date record of how many people have entered and exited homelessness, according to county leaders. 'This accurate and timely data is a major milestone that provides increased transparency and accountability while helping frontline workers, decision-makers, and the whole community make progress that we can more easily track and therefore achieve,' Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said in a statement. The dashboard shares how many people are currently receiving rent assistance on a monthly basis, whereas that data used to be shared every three months. It also tracks whether people were able to leave homelessness for housing. John Tapogna, the senior policy advisor for ECOnorthwest said housing data — including how much housing is currently available — is crucial to ending homelessness. 'The root of our homelessness crisis is housing affordability,' he said. 'Local governments have sheltered and housed more people than ever — outperforming the goals set under the ambitious Supportive Housing Services measure — but the need continues to outpace the available resources.' Pickup plows through Vancouver brewery; driver hurt This data, combined with Multnomah County's real-time shelter availability, will make it easier for the county to ensure those experiencing homelessness are receiving the care they need. Prior to the by-name list, county leaders used to rely on the Point in Time Count to record how many people were experiencing homelessness, as determined by the federally-required Homeless Management Information System. However, officials said this data county meant the same unnamed person could be counted more than once. Multnomah County took over the information system in March 2024, allowing them to gather fresh data with people listed by name to improve tracking. 'This is an important milestone and provides a path for actionable, data-informed decisions aimed at making homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring,' Meghan Arsenault, the county's senior strategy lead for community solutions. The dashboard also reveals that the number of people experiencing homelessness has increased over the past year due to several factors, including housing shortages, evictions, expanded services, and better data collection. Oregon bill aiming to crack down on costly concert tickets gets 'do-pass' recommendation However, leaders say this increase is a sign that the county's data has improved by reflecting the number of people who have been 'experiencing homelessness all along, but had not previously been counted.' 'Our region has a new baseline from which to anchor strategy and performance,' Central City Concern CEO Andrew B. Mendenhall said. 'We are saddened, but not surprised by this data.' It also comes as the Homeless Services Department faces criticism for its projected in the next fiscal year. Stay with KOIN 6 News as we continue to cover the homeless crisis. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Burnside Bridge earthquake project delayed until 2028
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Despite the ever-looming threat of a major earthquake hitting the Cascadia Subduction Zone, efforts to reinforce Portland's Burnside Bridge have been delayed. Multnomah County leaders decided to extend the design phase for the years-long until 2028 — a year behind schedule. Hwy 26's 'The Bump' sends cars airborne as locals fight for improvements Officials said the decision comes during a period of uncertainty on a federal level. By delaying the bridge's construction, Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said the county will be able to find more opportunities to cut costs. 'The County remains committed to resilience projects like the Earthquake Ready Burnside Bridge Project, which are critical for our region,' Vega Pederson said. 'This seismically resilient bridge will not only provide much needed infrastructure, it will be an immediately usable lifeline route for emergency responders in the wake of a major earthquake, increase multi-modal transit options and help us meet climate goals for the long term.' The project, which began in 2019, has worked with several groups – including – for aesthetic plans, structural components, costs and long-term maintenance needs. In September, the county announced that an had been approved. Multnomah County Transportation Director Jon Henrichsen told KOIN 6 News they had been counting on grant funding but are now unsure whether they can expect federal money during the Trump Administration. 'Agencies are being reduced. Agencies that oversee the project and the regulatory environment of the project, including the environmental regulations that the project is built in, are experiencing changes in their mandates,' Henrichsen said. 'So we're kind of waiting to see how all that works out.' Henrichsen said the bridge project — with an 895 million dollar budget — will be difficult to get done without the help of federal money. Multnomah County is dealing with money issues of its own, though he also added that the transportation's budget will not be impacted 'We can't really start construction until we have enough money to complete the whole bridge, because we're building the new bridge, on the same alignment as the existing bridge,' he said. 'We're going to have to take the existing bridge out of service. Once it's gone, it's gone. And we can't risk not having enough money to put the old bridge back in place.' Eugene limited edition sneaker shop owner, CFO plead guilty to $80M fraud scheme The project aims to replace the Burnside Bridge with a bridge that will withstand a Cascadia Subduction Zone quake, which is expected in the zone every 300-500 years. According to Multnomah County, the project is necessary because no vehicular bridges that cross the Willamette River would be usable after the 'The Big One.' As of 2025, the only bridge currently thought capable of surviving the shock is the Wapato Bridge connecting Portland to Sauvie Island. Jan. 26, 2025, marked the 325th anniversary of the most recent earthquake — a massive magnitude 9 quake spanning Northern California to British Columbia. However, Henrichsen said the delay does not mean the project is not a priority for the county. 'It's not unusual for a big project like this to experience delays, or to get the timeline pushed back a bit because they're complex,' he said. 'But it doesn't have anything to do with the importance of the project to Multnomah County. It's really just the situation that we're in.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
MultCo reports 13% increase in housing among homeless in late 2024 as budget shortfall looms
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Nearly 2,500 people in Multnomah County who were homeless halfway through 2024 had successfully found permanent housing by the end of the year, county leaders announced Tuesday. Recently released data from the second half of 2024 reveal that the county's Homeless Services Department recorded 2,469 people were in housing and were no longer experiencing homelessness at the start of 2025. 'Very fortunate': Two survive downed tree crashing onto car in Oregon City 'We are providing the right services at the right time for many people who have desperately needed help for so long,' Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said. 'We are not close to done — but this last quarter of investment and momentum should give us all hope for the future.' Data show that 6,288 people found shelter between July and December 2024 through the county's contracted providers and 7,142 people were able to avoid eviction with emergency rent assistance. The Homeless Services Department, previously known as the Joint Office of Homeless Services, said these numbers mean that 13% more people have permanent housing, 17% more people have access to shelter, and 22% more people dodged eviction than in the second half of 2023. Chair Vega Pederson said this is a sign that the county's programs are moving more people off the streets with shelter and housing. 'Multnomah County has done what we said we would by getting money out the door quickly in ways that are improving conditions in every neighborhood we serve — to the benefit of our entire state and region,' Vega Pederson said. 'We're sheltering and housing more people than ever before — and preventing more people from becoming homeless.' Powerful storm produces 180 lightning strikes in Western Oregon However, the county claims this progress could be squashed due to an of 25% overall — with $104 million on the chopping block for housing and shelter assistance. During a recent press conference, Vega Pederson called this funding shortage 'catastrophic,' adding that it will lead to cuts in shelter beds, rent assistance, outreach programs currently funded by the Supportive Housing Service measure and the Multnomah County general fund. Department Director Dan Field said last year's improvements are a sign that these funds should be prioritized by state leaders. 'We're making difficult decisions right now about how to manage shrinking resources while continuing to serve our community,' Field said. 'The pace of progress we're seeing won't continue unless we find additional resources to sustain the work.' $2M worth of Nikes stolen from freight trains in desert Last week, Vega Pederson sent letters to the State of Oregon and Metro to provide more resources to help maintain these services. She requested an additional $55 million from the state and $30 in unspent administrative funds from Metro. KOIN 6 News immediately reached out to Gov. Tina Kotek, who said she had 'outstanding questions and potential concerns about how the county decided to make cuts to homeless services in their general fund.' Stay with KOIN 6 News as we continue to follow this story. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Yahoo
Drug user drop-off program sees early progress in Multnomah County, data show
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – It's been six months since Multnomah County kicked off its deflection program that gives drug users a choice between seeking treatment and serving jail time. The deflection program , and within four months, law enforcement partners reported 221 referrals — including nine repeat referrals. According to the county, 67% of drug users chose the treatment route. Columbia River Gorge hit hard by atmospheric river as Portland sees record rain Of those who engaged in the deflection program, more than 24% were marked as a 'successful' completion by the county. Multnomah County officials previously told KOIN 6 News that success is measured by whether a person . The county also reported that 31 deflections from the first three months are still pending as of late February. Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said these numbers are a good starting off point for a program that remains in development. 'This initiative has not only built pathways to treatment, it has integrated life-saving wraparound services as an alternative to the legal system,' Vega Pederson said. 'We were called on to offer evidence-based support in a caring and compassionate environment while holding people accountable – and that's exactly what we've done.' Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now The creation of Multnomah County's deflection program coincided with the passage of HB 4002, which re-introduced criminal penalties for people possessing small amounts of hard drugs in Oregon. The bill created an opportunity for individual counties to build deflection programs to help people with addiction. However, the county also clarified that these early reports should be taken with a grain of salt due to the 'small sample size and the newness of the program.' 'While there are some similarities in deflection programs across the country, deflection programs are typically designed to meet unique local challenges and there is no standardized data collection mechanism,' according to the county. 'Even in Oregon, each county's program is somewhat unique.' During a public safety briefing on Feb. 12, the Oregon Criminal Justice Commissioner's executive director Ken Sanchagrin said he is 'focused mostly on the number of folks going in to make sure these programs are robust enough.' The Coordinated Care Pathway Center in SE Portland serves as the county's official drop-off point for drug users seeking treatment. The center, which under the service provider , is currently in 'phase one' with assessment and exam rooms, shower facilities and staff officers. Those taken to the center are asked to share demographic information, such as their housing status. Early data show nearly 75% of participants were experiencing homelessness at the time of their referral, with 45% reporting they were completely unsheltered. Close to 40% of participants said they needed food assistance and 80% said they had recently visited an emergency department. Tuerk House CEO Bernard Gyebi-Foster said that 'every referral, every engagement, every encounter brings people one step closer to meaningful recovery.' 'As we review these early metrics, it's important to remember these aren't just numbers — they represent real people who have been using highly-addictive and potent substances that require intensive withdrawal management,' Gyebi-Foster said. Woman, 54, hit by motorcycle going over 30 mph on Highway 101 Tony Vezina, the executive director with 4-D Recovery, said he knows these programs work based on firsthand experience. 'I'm a person in recovery. I was homeless on the streets of Portland. I was a heroin addict for a while living outside. I went to treatment, sometimes voluntarily on my own, but the last time that I went to treatment, it was through a diversion program which is similar in principles to what we see in deflection,' Vezina said. 'I was offered an opportunity to go to treatment instead of incarceration. I chose treatment, and I've been sober ever since. I'm coming up on 13 years.' The program is expected to expand with more referral partnerships and transportation options for those coming to and from the deflection center. County officials also plan to add 13 sobering beds to the center in spring 2025. So far, the county has approved for the center's development — nearly double what it was expected to cost when the facility was first proposed last year. 'We must remain patient and persistent,' Vega Pederson said. 'The journey to recovery is rarely linear, and our approach must be both flexible and compassionate.' Stay with KOIN 6 News as this story develops. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
