The day-access center designated by the City of Portland in
August as a safe haven for those pushed off the streets by its new
sit-lie ordinance has been struggling with a burgeoning drug
problem.
Over recent weeks, used needles have been found sporadically in the
Julia West House’s bathrooms on SW 13th and Alder—along with
blood—and meth addicts and dealers have been showing up in
droves, according to the center’s interim supervisor, Pastor Tom
Nolen.
“It’s true that the tweakers have found Julia West and are once
again using our regular guests as camouflage,” says Nolen.
Fights have broken out inside the center as a result, with one
volunteer reportedly being slugged by a service user. Now, the center
has imposed a capacity limit of 75 people with the aim of reducing
overcrowding and stress inside. Nevertheless, Nolen feels clients
inside the center are safe.
“There’s increased drug activity all over town,” says Marvin
Mitchell, who is in charge of the center. “Not just at the Julia West
House. Let’s remember, at the beginning this was supposed to be one of
three or four centers the city imagined. My question is what are we
doing about the other centers?”
The other centers are the responsibility of the mayor’s Street
Access for Everyone (SAFE) committee, co-chaired by vice president of
downtown services for the Portland Business Alliance, Mike
Kuykendall—who admits making little progress.
“We are working to identify a second shelter that could open in the
morning hours to help alleviate the demands on the Julia West House
until the permanent day-access shelter is open,” he says.
The SAFE committee recently gave the Julia West House an extra
$25,200 to cover the cost of high demand.
“It’s disturbing that the solution is more homeless day-access
centers,” says Street Roots Director Israel Bayer. “We should be
talking human rights, harm reduction, and housing, not whatever flavor
of the day to get poor people out of sight and out of mind.”