About the project:
The Orange Fence Project seeks to improve public understanding of the daily lives of homeless Portlanders and the systemic and personal circumstances through which people became homeless. By reporting on personal experiences, testimony, data and improving accountability for public officials, Street Roots will identify and report more feasible steps to address homelessness.
Homelessness and the enforcement of local laws on homeless people are almost entirely untracked by independent groups. As a result, the effects of these laws and enforcement — positive or negative — are largely unstudied and unknown. By engaging community members and implementing a solutions journalism framework, this project will address gaps in public knowledge while revealing potential solutions to systemic issues.
Through rigorous reporting, public record gathering, crowdsourced information and continued observation, Street Roots will provide a comprehensive overview of homelessness policy, enforcement and impact in Portland.
Homelessness policy, enforcement and impact in Portland
Portland said it was investing in homeless people’s safety. Deaths have skyrocketed.
The city responded to an increase in homeless deaths by intensifying encampment sweeps and adding emergency shelter at the expense of permanent housing. Experts say this has perpetuated the problem.
Judge bars Grants Pass from enforcing anti-homeless ordinances while lawsuit continues
The order comes as the city seeks to hire former Trump homelessness czar as a consultant, stoking fears of a more destructive approach to crisis
Joint Office of Homeless Services releases rapid rehousing report
Recent data shows short-term assistance toward long-term housing is working
Letter, ODOJ outline legal vulnerabilities at Grants Pass homeless sites
Disability Rights Oregon letter could be the first step toward legal action if the city does not honor reasonable accommodations requests. The Oregon Department of Justice could ultimately intervene.
Grants Pass scrambles to meet humanitarian standards at new outdoor homeless sites
Advocates say a lack of water, shade and other resources endanger people forced to live on a bare lot as hot weather approaches
MultCo Sheriff orders deputies not to book anyone in jail under the city’s latest sleeping ban
Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell urges focus on creating pathways out of homelessness in a statement explaining the policy; Wheeler pushes PPB to continue enforcement
City of Albany orders people to vacate its only designated spot for public sleeping
Homeless residents living in the vacant lots must vacate by Aug. 29
City contractors post sweep notifications for homeless encampments amid heat wave
Mayor Ted Wheeler declared a state of emergency July 2 due to extreme heat, but city contractors continued posting sweep notifications on homeless encampments throughout emergency
Local policymaking reveals ideological rifts while homelessness crisis continues
Despite a new plan’s optimism, city-county homelessness agreement discourse follows age-old pattern in a ginned up moral panic
Rapid Response agrees to pay in wrongful death suit
The private for-profit contractor reversed course after initially asking a judge to set aside a previous default ruling against the company
Portland enforces public sleeping ban
After successful court challenges to previous sleeping ban, the new ordinance is in effect
Supreme Court rules arresting, citing people for not having shelter is constitutional
US Supreme Court overturns lower court ruling on Oregon homelessness case, decides criminalizing homeless residents for sleeping outside is not cruel and unusual
Portland, Multnomah County seek to avoid ‘messy divorce’ on homelessness approach
The ambitious new Homelessness Response Action Plan is supported by top city, county and state officials. Others want to torpedo the joint homelessness office.
Turnkey Act seeks congressional approval for $1B annual housing projects
Oregon’s Project Turnkey shows early successes, could serve as a model for national emergency housing investments
Pets provide comfort for many homeless Portlanders
Pets can be integral to surviving homelessness. Providing hope, connection and companionship in difficult circumstances.
Two years after default ruling on wrongful death lawsuit, Rapid Response Bio Clean wants a do-over
The request for the court to set aside the lawsuit ruling was due in part because its owner and attorney forgot about the case
City Council again attempts to criminalize public sleeping, likely to face legal challenge
Portland City Council passes amended law seeking to jail and fine homeless Portlanders after court injunction halted 2023 version
Former employees, homeless Portlanders cite various violations, lack of training in Rapid Response Bio Clean’s practices
Portland’s primary sweep contractor dogged by lawsuits, concerns, complaints
Sweeping Decision: Grants Pass v. Johnson
As the U.S. Supreme Court considers Grants Pass v. Johnson, addressing homelessness requires more work, regardless of outcome
PDX Auditor: Urban Alchemy violated city lobbying code in 2022
Nonprofit managing city shelter sites spent thousands of dollars and countless hours garnering officials’ favor without reporting lobbying, Portland City Auditor finds
A Grants Pass case before the Supreme Court will decide if punishing homeless residents is cruel and unusual
The Oregon town’s homeless residents say it is impossible to avoid being punished for having no place to live
Understanding women’s unique experiences in homelessness and poverty
2023 Point in Time count reveals 4,857 unsheltered women across Oregon
New report expands on county homelessness data
A new report finds 22,000 homeless children in Oregon, Black and Native communities overrepresented
Homeless Portlanders report ongoing issues retrieving personal items after sweeps
The city’s private contractor, Rapid Response Bio Clean stores confiscated items in a warehouse for retrieval after sweeps, but homeless Portlanders say retrieval is next to impossible
Supreme Court agrees to hear homelessness case
The Supreme Court will review a lower court decision barring cities’ criminalization of homelessness
Turning Green Into Gold: Urban Alchemy and local service providers
Part 3: Local outreach workers see improvements, but say lack of a clear process disrupts care and trust at Urban Alchemy-run villages
Falling through the net: Aged homelessness in Oregon
An increasing number of older Oregonians end up on the streets while local and state initiatives seek to mend a faltering safety net
Turning Green Into Gold: Urban Alchemy’s million-dollar lawsuit
Part 2: Urban Alchemy settled a $1 million lawsuit days after Portland opened a UA-operated shelter site in July. The class action suit, brought by an employee in California, speaks to concerns about the organization’s model.
2022 deadliest year on record for homeless Multnomah County residents
Multnomah County’s 2022 Domicile Unknown report finds 315 homeless residents died amid surge in overdoses, homicides, self-harm deaths and traffic fatalities
Turning Green Into Gold: Urban Alchemy structure, funding and admission
Part 1: Portland brought in a California nonprofit to run its temporary shelter sites amid criticism. Homeless Portlanders find hope and disappointment in the promise of a sanctioned space to live.
Property planned for Temporary Alternative Shelter Site contaminated with hazardous chemicals
DEQ awaits a risk assessment from the city to inform the timeline for cleanup
MultCo DA: Mayor didn’t notify DA of ‘daytime camping ban’ enforcement, hasn’t responded to DA’s questions about its role
Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt told Mayor Ted Wheeler the district attorney’s office is not able to fulfill its role as described in the ordinance banning most sleeping in public in a Nov. 6 letter.
Questions remain ahead of Portland sleeping ban enforcement
Homeless Portlanders, service providers prepare for Nov. 13 sleeping ban enforcement while the mayor’s office goes quiet
Portland has a waste problem — where is it coming from?
Despite public perception, Metro data shows housed residents are responsible for most waste dumped on public property
Shelter project gets unfriendly reception in small towns
Church at the Park wishes to build a shelter in Dallas for its unhoused community members, but many local residents fiercely oppose the idea
Oregon Law Center sues city over ‘camping’ ban, judge denies temporary restraining order
A lawsuit filed Friday argues the ordinance is objectively unreasonable, violates state law and Oregon constitution
Commissioner Rene Gonzalez said his decision to halt tent distribution was for fire safety. Emails tell a different story.
A Jan. 11 memo suggests Gonzalez halted tent distribution to align with mayor’s camping ban
Portland’s daytime camping ban lacks concrete plans, procedures
Vague communication from city causes concern among homeless Portlanders and service providers
Despite historical failures, Portland wants to fine, jail homeless Portlanders
In a city where homeless people are already much more likely to face arrest than housed people, officials have a ‘new’ proposal: warn, fine and arrest homeless Portlanders
Right to rest? Not in Oregon.
A bill to give homeless people the right to be left alone fails to move through OR House
Urban Alchemy is coming to Portland
City awards mass camp contract to nonprofit trailed by lawsuits
Details on Portland’s mass camp plans emerge from failed negotiation
Emails reveal safety and planning concerns — city says 1,000-foot perimeters and weapons checks planned
How tenants around Portland fight back against landlords
With help from mutual aid group Don’t Evict PDX, tenants receive rental assistance funds, guidance on eviction notices and support for tenant advocacy and organizing
New Avenues for Youth workers want a union
Nonprofit workers assisting homeless youth await recognition from management
Housing for frontline social service workers addressing the homelessness crisis
The Atomic Orchard Experiment aims to honor what people do as workers and as Portlanders
Dan Ryan yet to respond to June call for new tenant protections
An attorney tasked with enforcing similar protections tells Street Roots why protections work and how they serve to level an uneven playing field
Eviction court favors landlords
Oregon is in a housing crisis. Experts say eviction court is part of the problem.
New, innovative project offers lifeline to youths after foster care
Ascending Flow uses music and mentorship to support youth aging out of Oregon’s foster care system
Senior policy advisor for Commissioner Dan Ryan resigns in response to plan for mass camps
A resignation letter said the recently passed plan to ban unsanctioned encampments and construct mass camps will lead to ‘irreparable trauma and unnecessary deaths’
Sen. Wyden says housing is a human right
Sen. Wyden’s DASH Act languishes in committee, despite being among most comprehensive current proposals to address homelessness
The Driftwood Castle at Kelley Point Park
A homeless Portlander, dubbed ‘the Driftwood Wizard,’ began building a driftwood shelter in late summer. He left with nary a trace, an impermanent structure and indelible impression in his wake.
Despite classifying an increasing number of fires as ‘homeless related,’ Portland Fire and Rescue can’t determine what’s causing majority of fires
It’s unclear how many fires classified as ‘homeless related’ actually involve homeless Portlanders
Joint Office of Homeless Services reduces supply distribution, advocates concerned as colder weather approaches
JOHS reduced supply distribution to a single pickup per month, advocates say this decision has dire consequences
From the editor: It’s the most wonderful time of the year
Over the next four weeks, expect to learn a lot about what candidates plan to do about housing and homelessness
Oregon property managers oversee large share of evictions
Landlords send property managers to court in their stead while tenants struggle to represent themselves
Affordable housing for Native Americans offers community, stability and support
NAYA, which already maintains three affordable development projects in the Cully neighborhood, plans to begin construction on a new project in the Portsmouth neighborhood next year
HUD’s ‘House America’ initiative takes housing-first approach to homelessness
Street Roots talks with key official about the program’s aims to alleviate homelessness by year’s end
Need and poverty are rising in Oregon
Cost of living, inflation and ongoing pandemic impacts contribute to record levels of poverty
City contractors swept homeless Portlanders during state of emergency
Mayor Ted Wheeler declared a state of emergency July 22 due to the impending danger of extreme heat, but city contractors continued sweeping homeless encampments until at least July 25 at noon
Portland’s new shelter referral system becoming less effective with time
Street Services Coordination Center offering fewer shelter referrals as sweeps increase
Homeless people are more likely to be victims of violence than housed people
For many housed people, there is a tendency to conflate unhoused populations with violent crime and danger, but crime rates tell a different story.
Old Town’s 90-day ‘reset’ yields sweeps with little notice, no advance postings
Unhoused Portlanders swept using the tactic say it undermines safety, stability and human dignity
City of Portland posts many homeless encampments at least twice before a sweep
The city extends the legal window for sweeps by posting and reposting encampments, which can cause distress and logistical issues for unhoused Portlanders
Editorial | Street Roots launches independent Sweep Tracker
Street Roots’ independent Sweep Tracker will use crowdsourced information to provide accountability
Neighborhood associations demand criminal background checks in Safe Rest Villages citywide, prompting discrimination concerns
City officials did not say if background checks are being considered
Despite increased capacity, still not enough shelter beds
There are only 1,600 shelter beds in Multnomah county for more than 4,000 people experiencing homelessness
Business owners asked for sweeps and got them
Close ties raise questions about fairness in the city’s effort to alleviate homelessness
Editorial | Introducing The Orange Fence Project
Focusing on homelessness policy, enforcement and impact in Portland
All 6 Safe Rest Village sites are confirmed, what’s next?
Under emergency authorization from Portland mayor, Dan Ryan announces new SRV site locations