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In the background is an image of an orange fence and text in the foreground reads, "The Orange Fence Project" and below that, "Homelessness policy, enforcement, and impact in Portland.

Homelessness policy, enforcement and impact in Portland

Street Roots

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.

  • Street Roots
    A fire truck parked in front of the fire department building along the waterfront in Portland.

    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
    By
    Aurora Biggers Henry Brannan
    November 9, 2022
  • Street Roots

    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
    By
    Tyler Walicek
    November 2, 2022
  • Street Roots
    Street Roots logo

    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
    By
    K. Rambo
    September 21, 2022
  • Street Roots
    A man on an orange background looks like a puppet being held by marionette strings. The man is wearing a suit and holding a briefcase. He is leaping above houses.

    Oregon property managers oversee large share of evictions

    Landlords send property managers to court in their stead while tenants struggle to represent themselves
    By
    Piper McDaniel
    September 14, 2022
  • Street Roots
    NAYA’s Mammon Tokatee affordable housing apartment building. People are standing in front of the entry of the building.

    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
    By
    Melanie Henshaw
    August 31, 2022
  • Street Roots
    4 people sit in a circle outside talking while seated around a table.

    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
    By
    Piper McDaniel
    August 26, 2022
  • Street Roots
    Fresh foods at William Temple pantry

    Need and poverty are rising in Oregon

    Cost of living, inflation and ongoing pandemic impacts contribute to record levels of poverty
    By
    Piper McDaniel
    August 17, 2022
  • Street Roots
    A bright orange collage. In the background is the pattern of an orange plastic fence, commonly associated with sweeps of homeless encampments. Above that and slightly opaque are piles of trash bags and a tent. In the foreground is a thermometer indicating

    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
    By
    K. Rambo
    August 3, 2022
  • Street Roots
    The ornate arches of Old Town/Chinatown in Portland.

    Portland’s new shelter referral system becoming less effective with time

    Street Services Coordination Center offering fewer shelter referrals as sweeps increase
    By
    Tyler Walicek K. Rambo
    July 20, 2022
  • Street Roots
    A photo of the ornate gateway arch that leads into Portland's Old Town/ Chinatown neighborhood. The arch is flanked by two bronze lion stratues.

    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.
    By
    Piper McDaniel
    July 13, 2022

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