‘It’s nuts down there’ -- Lawlessness spikes in Portland’s Old Town More than 100 tents dot sidewalks in Portland’s Old Town. Pedestrians have to step around feces and garbage as they walk through the neighborhood. Owners of businesses shuttered during the first wave of Oregon’s coronavirus epidemic are worried about reopening starting Friday, their entrances blocked by street campers. “State of Old Town & Reaching Out for Help,’’ read the subject line of an email from Helen Ying, chair of the Old Town Community Association to Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office. She included photos of the area’s blight. The complaints prompted Police Chief Jami Resch to devise a “high-visibility'’ police patrol plan for Old Town. On Wednesday, officers began what will be a 30-day presence on bikes, in cars and by foot. Residents and property owners say they’re seeing blatant drug dealing, aggressive behavior and unprovoked assaults. The number of people living in tents on Old Town sidewalks has spiked dramatically, they say, since the city halted cleanup of homeless camps because of the epidemic. While police calls from the neighborhood are down, Central Precinct Cmdr. Mike Krantz said it may be because businesses are closed and fewer people are in the area during the day to report offenses. Scott Kerman, executive director of Blanchet House, said he rarely called police before the COVID-19 public health crisis. The nonprofit provides free food, clothing and housing to people in need. “Everything was more or less pretty chill,’’ Kerman said, during the community association’s board meeting Wednesday. “That’s changed a lot under the current situation. We’re not seeing a lot of our regulars anymore. … We do have elements coming in here just looking to cause trouble.’’ On Wednesday morning, a Blanchet House resident was outside cleaning up when a stranger walked up, looked at him and took a swing, breaking his nose, Kerman said. “It was totally unprovoked,’’ he said https://www.oregonlive.com/coronavi...-town-as-coronavirus-shutters-businesses.html
This is what happens when we shut down/defund mental health services in order to make millionaires and billionaires richer. The rest of society suffers by default. And the crisis is only gonna get worse.
I would agree with this for most of the country. However having lived down town Portland and been in close proximity with the homeless there, I would say about 50% are legit mentally ill or physically handicapped. The rest are strung out, teen runaways or lazy folk looking for handouts and just want to sit in the park and smoke pot all day.
Blanchet house is a good place. I ate there when I was homeless. I went back to volunteer there after getting back on my feet.
So, I was either mentally ill/physically handicapped, or a strung out/runaway teen/lazy folk looking for handouts and just wanting to sit in the park and smoke pot all day when I was homeless?
That just means he's moderately smoking pot and moderately strung out and moderately lazy..moderately a little crazy
Not at all. Well I dunno. were you sitting in the park smoking pot all day? LOL. I have also been homeless and didn't fit that category, but we would be the far and few between and often temporary, because we are go getters with motivation to get off the street. My point being is Portland, and really SF and Seattle too, I believe had a disproportionate of homeless that are willing to settle for being on the streets when they could change it if they wanted, vs most other cities that have a higher percentage of people who don't have self imposed limitations preventing them from getting off the streets. I will say this, as many hit unemployment and lose the living quarters, I woulds expect this to change and the percentage drastically increase for those who don't want on the street and can do something about it, but the economy is too fucked to get employment. We will be entering a new phase of homeless not really seen before, where I believe the majority will be productive members of society feeling the wrath of the virus and resulting lockdowns/closures.
The Blanchet House was started in the late ‘40’s or early ‘50’s by a group of U of Portland students. As a kid, I resented that place with a passion, as my dad seemed to spend more time in the Blanchet House basement working to keep an old, past it’s prime boiler going than he seemed to spend at home with his family. And I’m not sure the place ever received a bill. Now as a (hopefully) wiser adult, I’m proud of him. As a teenager I worked on that boiler myself several times....and ate lunch with the rest of “the gang”. It was an incredible social learning experience for me and I’d like to think it taught me some compassion. Most of the old timers who founded Blanchet House are gone now, but they were a fine group of successful, dedicated men who knew how lucky they were and who made lifelong efforts to give back to those who weren’t as fortunate. God bless them.
Back in the mid 60's I spent time in the bay area and there was a culture of hanging out, not working, partying, music chicks, music chicks, music chicks... HA was a mix of hippies, bikers, vacationers, and gawkers. They called it crashing somewhere then now its homeless.
Old Town will become East Hastings in Vancouver, Canada before our very eyes. It should be illegal to be homeless. Its not only a public nuisance, its a public health crisis. Violence and disease follows the homeless. Have the homeless put in a facility in some kind of work release/training/skills program, while earning money in a jobs program. If they don't want to work, they don't get out. If they do make enough money and get skills to get a job, they can leave after they can afford housing on their own.
What a great post...enjoyed it way more than the movie I tried to watch last night! Your dad sounds like a good man!