On Monday, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson declared that the city will build 50 new recovery shelter beds at the Bybee Lakes Hope Center in North Portland using around $1.5 million in opioid settlement cash.
The release stated that the beds will be made accessible as part of a 17-month pilot experiment.
According to Skylar Brocker-Knapp, director of Portland Solutions, the department in charge of the city’s homeless response, the 24-hour beds will be available to homeless individuals who require assistance with opioid rehabilitation and are referred by service providers. When the beds become available in the coming weeks, Brocker-Knapp said those who are starting recovery or who are in between detox and residential treatment would be among those served.
Wilson said in a statement on Monday that there is a great need in our community for 24-hour shelters that specialize on opioid addiction recovery and that he is thankful for the chance to help those in need find hope and recovery.
Wilson described the beds as an additional component of his campaign pledge to eradicate Portland’s unsheltered homelessness. After the county and city opened 200 overnight shelter beds in January, the 50 new rehabilitation beds were announced. The overnight shelters are operated by the Salvation Army, and as of Feb. 1, slightly under half of those beds were being filled most nights.
October 18, 2023, at the Bybee Lakes Hope Campus in North Portland. Once the abandoned Wapato Correctional Facility, the 155,400-square-foot building has been converted into a program-based transitional housing center for the homeless.Graves, Mark/The Oregonian
The nonprofit service organization Helping Hands operates the Bybee Lakes Hope Center, a recovery facility that was once the location of the abandoned Wapato jail. In October 2020, the center opens. However, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported that by the summer of 2023, the facility was experiencing financial issues and its entire capacity was not being used. A $1.5% cash infusion from Multnomah County that fall saved it.
According to a 2023 report by The Oregonian/Oregon reside, the facility now has 175 beds and is designed to give those in recovery from substance use disorders a sober place to reside as they pursue therapy. Bybee Lakes’ services have often been more organized than those of low-barrier shelters that merely offer a place to sleep. As soon as they are able, participants in Bybee Lakes’ long-term shelter program are required to pay $250 per month for case management, food, and other services.
In order to directly replace the beds that will be deleted when a downtown shelter operated by Do Good Multnomah closes in March, Multnomah County is presently in negotiations to provide 100 extra emergency shelter beds at Bybee Lakes. According to internal communications that Willamette Week was able to get, the closure was primarily caused by safety concerns at the location. By late spring, Bybee Lakes may have 325 beds running with the county and city additions.
Bybee Lakes’ location at the confluence of the Columbia and Willamette rivers, immediately south of Kelly Point Park, raises questions regarding homeless people’s access to the center. Transportation will be provided for those who are eligible for beds, according to Brocker-Knapp.
According to city officials, the specifics of the deal between the city and Helping Hands to staff and run the new recovery beds are still being worked out. Later this week, a formal deal is anticipated.
For The Oregonian, Lillian Mongeau Hughes writes about mental health and homelessness. For advice or inquiries, send her an email [email protected]. Or follow her on X at @lrmongeau or [email protected].
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