Jeff Woodward, a boots-on-the-ground frontline worker with the Mental Health and Addiction Association of Oregon, spends his days bringing harm reduction supplies out to homeless encampments and connecting folks with resources for medicine, health insurance, work opportunities and shelters. During extreme weather conditions with low temperatures, outreach workers deliver extra sleeping bags, tents, tarps and blankets.
Balancing work they are passionate about with being able to pay rent is a challenge for many people engaged in helping on the front lines of the homelessness crisis. A creative solution for some of these workers is on the way with occupation-specific housing for those who work with homeless Portlanders.
“It's a huge problem,” Woodward said. “A lot of people on our teams are homeless when they’re hired. It's really hard because those people want to give back and are ready to work.”
Not adding up
Small nonprofits providing direct services to homeless Portlanders rely on grants, donations and Supportive Housing Services funding. Some organizations like Central City Concern also receive state and federal money, but depend on additional donations to remain fiscally stable and provide more services, according to their 2021 annual report. Many caseworkers, social workers, residential advocates, managers and people working for these groups earn $21 to $26 hourly for full-time work. According to Zillow, the average monthly rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Portland is $1,874 — more than half of the average social service worker’s monthly gross income. Add the cost of groceries, gas and car maintenance, phone and internet, and these workers are perilously close to needing help with their own housing solutions.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, defines “cost-burdened” as monthly housing costs, including utilities, exceeding 30% of monthly income. HUD defines a family or individual as “severely cost burdened” if they spend more than 50% of their monthly income on housing costs.
Home Forward can offer Section 8 vouchers to subsidize a one-bedroom apartment in downtown Portland for a maximum of $1,588 monthly, based on fair market rent, but financial assistance with housing can be complicated for frontline workers because of income limits and eligibility.
In order to qualify for HUD housing assistance, a household’s annual income must be less than 50% of the median income — $78,476 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau — which comes out to less than $18.87 an hour for full-time workers.
What help may come
Kevin Cavenaugh, founder and director of Guerrilla Development, works to help economically marginalized people and retailers. Guerrilla Development buildings are unique and recognizable around Portland, with trees, plants and colorful designs on the building exteriors. The names are whimsical, like Atomic Orchard Experiment and Jolene’s First Cousin. Each name is a mystery, and each building has a purpose.
Construction just started on the Atomic Orchard Experiment, a building with affordable apartments for frontline social service workers dealing with the homelessness crisis. Workers will complete the project at Northeast 25th Avenue and Sandy Boulevard, which includes 49 identical units, in 14 months. About half of the units will be only for social service workers. The other 24 will rent to anyone else for market value at about $1,800 monthly. The apartments for frontline workers will rent at about half of that. Like most other apartment buildings, rentals will be available first come, first serve. There will be a deposit of the first and last month’s rent with a one-year lease. Rent will increase after the first year at 3-4%.
The lower-rent apartments are interspersed with the market-value apartments, so tenants are not separated from each other by their professions or income. Seven units will be available to social service workers the first year and two or three each year after that until they reach 25 units.
These loft apartments will have 650 square feet in living area with 16-foot high ceilings. Each will have an open space with a kitchen and living room and an 11-foot glass garage door providing natural light. There are wood floors, ceiling lights and a fan. A spiral staircase leads to the bedroom and bathroom. Pets are welcome. While there is no off-street parking, the location is near several bus lines, restaurants and businesses on Sandy Boulevard.
The social service field attracts people who care about helping others, and they bring skills and expertise to this work. However, their wages and benefits are often less than what they are for people with the same level of education and years of experience in other fields.
“The challenge is being able to afford to do the work,” Katie O’Brien, executive director of Rose Haven day shelter for women, said. “Affordable housing and higher wages might allow people to stay in the work longer and have less financial stress.”
Small nonprofits with little funding can pay employees as much as possible and prioritize health insurance and paid time off to keep employees healthy, but the work is still demanding and emotionally taxing — and the cost of living continues to rise faster than wages.
Some social service workers eventually look for other work. Part of this is due to income, but quite often, it is because of burnout and stress. It is trauma-informed work providing many people with connections to resources, from keeping them alive to getting them housed.
“It is heartbreaking to them,” O’Brien said. “They do this work because it is soul-feeding, but they have to pay their bills.”
Guerrilla Development offers a sliver of hope. The goal is to weave social repair into the fabric of Portland.
Funding development
Investors have already lined up to fund the Atomic Orchard Experiment.
The minimum investment is $100,000, and it is restricted to “accredited investors.” The investors will earn $4,000 each year on their investment, and after 10 years, they receive the principal $100,000 and an additional $100,000. This means an average return of 14% each year. The lower-rent apartments will be paid for in 10 years because the profits go into the building.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Cavenaugh said.
Choosing renters based on their profession is legal. Cavenaugh referred to this as “positive discrimination.” He does anticipate pushback and press when this goes into effect, but he is undeterred — this is all part of the experiment.
Socially conscious architects and developers could draw inspiration from Guerrilla Development’s ideas. Cavenaugh hopes the open-source plans can be replicated and adapted to fit designs for other cities. All floor plans and financial spreadsheets for Guerrilla Development projects are posted on its website so anyone can build their versions of the developments.
Guerrilla Development operates another project benefiting homeless Portlanders, first launched December 2019. Jolene’s First Cousin is on Southeast Gladstone Street and 28th Avenue in the Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood of Portland. Formerly houseless individuals occupy 11 units with a shared kitchen. JOIN facilitates finding renters and collecting rent through the Landlord Recruitment and Retention Team. Investors also fund this project.
Tom Beer, a Portlander who invested in Jolene’s First Cousin, said a desire to help homeless Portlanders motivated him to invest. The investment, Beer said, came with the added benefit of less risk when compared to market-rate development.
“Basically when you invest there is a real risk and there is hope for a return on investment,” Beer said. “What motivated us was the desire to solve problems in Portland. We were happy to get a lower return if we could help house 11 people who were houseless. It may be that such a project has less risk than a project that seeks to charge market rents. When rent is affordable, what is the chance you won’t find renters? There is peace of mind with less risk.”
The road ahead
Jolene’s Second Cousin is in the works with living space for currently homeless Portlanders. This building will be located on Glisan Street in the Montavilla neighborhood. With 11 single-resident units and a shared kitchen, living room and dining room, toilets and showers, the residents will establish their own rules and systems for living here. Each resident will have a private bedroom, closet and sink. The plan is to be ready in 2023.
A project that will benefit young Portlanders is the Great Scott Trio, also slated for completion in 2023. Located on East Burnside Street, this building will have retail space and apartments. Of the 40 apartments, several will be reserved for 18-year-olds aging out of Oregon’s foster care system. All units will be rented at 60% of the median family income.
There are 24 projects at Guerrilla Development dating back to 2001. These are designed for offices, retail and apartments. In addition to Jolene’s First Cousin and a few units at C-Channel Lofts on North Rosa Parks Way, four future buildings will offer apartments at a lower-than-average rent.
Although Cavenaugh said the economy over the past year has made this work difficult, new projects will be completed in 2023, including the Atomic Orchard Experiment and Jolene’s Second Cousin. The goal is to honor what people do as workers and as Portlanders.
“On a cold rainy day, it's challenging, but it doesn’t bother me,” Woodward said. “I kind of like it, regardless of the weather. We have to prepare ourselves with proper rain equipment, wear boots and be well-rested. We watch out for each other, especially if someone is struggling or tired. We encourage folks to come out of their tents, but it’s harder to talk about services beyond survival when it is 40 degrees and raining. How can you talk to someone about getting an ID when they stand there shivering?”
Woodward’s lived experience with homelessness gives him perspective on helping others, and he values that empathy in people that work with him.
“There are physical and emotional challenges while staying patient and treating others with courtesy,” Woodward said. “We try to start a dialogue.”
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