New Clackamas Village shelter a ‘life-changing support’ for homeless residents

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Oregon Governor Tina Kotek and local leaders are celebrating the opening of the new Clackamas Village shelter on Wednesday.

The village features 24 beds for people experiencing homelessness in unincorporated Clackamas County. In addition, the new facility offers wrap-around services in line with the county’s recovery model for homeless response. The village is one of a few new shelters that will see Clackamas County increase its bed capacity by 25%, officials said.

“This shelter means a warm, safe, private space and the first step toward stability for people who have been struggling for a long time,” Governor Kotek said. “Here they will find hope, and they will receive health care, good meals, and life-changing support.”

The nonprofit Sunstone Way will provide 24/7 staff and wrap-around services for the village residents, with a focus on transitioning them to permanent housing, officials said. That includes opportunities in employment, education, mental health and recovery, community activities, peer support and assistance with applying to housing.

“I am struck by the immense amount of care put into every detail. These little details are not little at all. They are caring in action. They tell our neighbors that we see your humanity, and we see what you’ve been through, and we’re here to help,” Kotek said.

The Clackamas Village is one of a few new initiatives slated to increase the county’s homelessness response capacity, thanks in part to funding from the Governor’s Emergency Order on Homelessness and the voter-passed Metro Supportive Housing Services Measure. In addition to the 24 new spaces at Clackamas Village, the Stabilization Center and other new shelters in cities and rural areas will up the county’s total shelter spaces from 214 to 266, a 25% increase.

The expansion was made possible thanks to SHS money earmarked by the county, including $4.8 million to build the village and another $1.5 million per year to operate it, officials said.

“We know the village model works, and we are anxious to help our residents transition off the streets and onto a path of stability,” said Clackamas County Board Chair Craig Roberts.   

Clackamas County leaders said the village is the first of six major investments being made in support of its recovery-oriented system of care, including a recovery center, the Clackamas Stabilization Center and a new behavioral health clinic.

‘Less bomb-throwing, more problem solving’

While KOIN 6 News Reporter Lisa Balick was at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Clackamas Village shelter, she caught up with county leaders to get their response to finger-pointing from Portland City Council.

On Tuesday night, during a Portland City Council meeting, Councilor Jamie Dunphy implied there was an influx of homeless people coming into the city from Clackamas County.

“If you talk to Clackamas County, their Point in Time count said they had 200 people. That is because literally people are driving homeless people to the county border and saying, ‘Good luck. Portland will take care of you,’” Dunphy said.

KOIN 6 asked Clackamas County Commissioner Ben West for his response to the remark.

“I think we need less bomb-throwing and more problem-solving,” West said. “And we need to be reflective where we have not done well in our own communities as local leaders and be responsible for those things.”