Homeless encampments: Difference between revisions

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==== Katie Lindsay, HUCIRP program coordinator ====
In a correspondence with a citizen in December 2020, City of Portland's HUCIRP program coordinator Katie Lindsay (who is also a qualified mental health professional and drug and alcohol counselor)<ref>https://www.streetroots.org/news/2019/03/15/portland-spends-millions-responding-homelessness-researchers-find</ref><ref>https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/registry/provider-view/1568852655</ref> summarized that about 90% of complaints made to HUCIRP are speculative.
"Almost 90% of the complaints our program has received regarding these units are related to stigma connected to the homeless population and complaints about things that ‘could happen,’ but have not happened," Lindsay wrote to the citizen. In a response to a citizen's complaint about the toilet placed near the complainant's house, Lindsay replied "Access to water and appropriate toilet options are recognized by the UN General Assembly as a human right" <ref name="toilet"> https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2020/12/portable-toilets-in-southeast-portland-stolen-vandalized-in-escalating-fight-between-city-and-neighbors.html</ref> Katie Lindsay's <ref name="pitstop"/> Lindsay described her experience with the interaction with the homeless in her professional capacity as "dealing with transients" during a public testimony at a Sherwood city council session on the matter of the presence of a 24 hour parking lot at the Walmart near her own house.<ref name="katie testimony"/>
 
In a media interview in her professional capacity, she described she's been besieged with angry phone calls about the red toilet.<ref>https://www.streetroots.org/news/2020/11/04/kaia-sand-access-hygiene-sanitation-human-right</ref> So, basically like taking phone calls from people concernedSpeaking about theher impact of homelessnessexperiences in their personal life and hold similar concerns she relate to when she's not wearing her professionalown hat.community In her personalof hatresidence, Katie said: <blockquote>'''''"I've spent a lot of my profession when i worked, umm dealing with transients and I mean we're talking things like petty crime, public intoxication, but those aren't things I want in my community."'''''<ref>https://youtu.be/yeucKkIX5sM?t=4123 (City of Sherwood City Council Testimony June 12, 2013</ref> - Katie Lindsay at the June 12, 2013 Sherwood city council session. </blockquote>With regard to homelessness in Portland, Lindsay described the role of HUCIRP as "Our role is not to solve homelessness, but to incrementally improve the experience of those living outdoors and the community at large by providing trash mitigation and sharps disposal services."<ref>https://www.facebook.com/PDXMayorTedWheeler/photos/portlandyou-know-that-our-public-servants-work-around-the-clock-on-your-behalf-b/10158089391008620/</ref> She has also proposed hygiene access for the homeless in Portland in 2017 which came with a price tag of around $159,000.<ref name="pitstop">PDX PitStop proposal https://web.archive.org/web/20171025111008/https://www.portlandmercury.com/images/blogimages/2017/10/19/1508444131-pdxpitstop_proposal.pdf</ref>
 
She acknowledged that when she was working at an organization that is the "largest homeless shelter in Portland". (Likelypossibly Portland Rescue Mission?<ref>https://www.portlandrescuemission.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Prayer-Calendar-August-2012.pdf</ref>), they would suggest their clients who can not enter the program to go camp at Walmart or the airport.
 
Lindsay was a vocal opponent about the presence of such a destination in her own community. She voraciously objected to the Super Walmart's 24 hour parking lot near where she owned a house where she raised her children. She emailed the city council and testified at a Sherwood City Council meeting urging the city to pass an ordinance to ban the 24 hour parking lot at Walmart near her house. She expressed she "spent a lot of time ''<u>dealing with transients</u>'', heavy crime and public intoxication" in her profession and "she does not want this in her community". The store and parking would give the homeless a 24 hour access to restroom and a place where homeless people can rest and sleep in their RVs. Essentially, Katherine Lindsay did not want what she advocates professionally being hosted in her own backyard on what appears to be speculative concerns about foresight of homeless related issues. She felt that the Walmart parking lot is a "responsible thing for Council to prevent."
"Katherine Kalpakis [ofTestifer, a Sherwood resident] came forward and said she has emailed the Council and said she bought a home in Sherwood in 2011 and is raising 3 small children here and has not attended meetings but she has voted, does research on the elections and she watches the meetings on TV. She said she has a very reasonable concerns and questions for the Council and the Planning Commission regarding the 24 hour parking. She said she received one response from Mayor Middleton. She stated for 3 1/2 years she worked for the largest homeless shelter in Portland and she did safety planning which is when a client can't come into the program they let them know what is practical for them to do and some of the advice is to go to the airport or find a Walmart parking lot. She said she also worked in Arizona with domestic violence shelters and that was also the advice they gave. She said she is concerned and stated it is easy to remedy the situation by eliminating the 24 hour parking and she has read reports that some of the crimes at Shari's and Wendy's are not significant, but that is not true about Walmart and she has spent a lot of time dealing with transients, heavy crime and public intoxication and she does not want this in her community and recommends they pass an ordinance. She said she does not want to have to pay for that or the burden of enforcing the 24 hour parking on our Police Department and said they should have to pay for it. She referred to an article in January from Pamplin Media that reported about the homelessness in this area and it suggested that people find safe places like Walmart because it is better to be in large groups rather than being on their own. She stated that this is a responsible thing for Council to prevent."<ref name="katie testimony">Sherwood City Council meeting minutes, June 12, 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20170131134712/https://www.sherwoodoregon.gov/sites/default/files/fileattachments/city_council/meeting/1330/06.12.13_city_council_minutes.pdf</ref><br />
ThatThe Pamplin Media article referenced abovein istestimony likelymay ''be "Men on the street''," by Saundra Sorenson, in the January 03 2013 printedition of TheTimes''The Times'' (Tigard, Tualatin, Sherwood): https://pamplinmedia.com/ttt/89-news/125909-men-on-the-street
 
====HUCIRP staff payroll expense====