March 19, 2021
First of all, I want to thank Mayor Mays, the City Council and City Staff for the collaboration and assistance over past few months as Mid-Columbia Community Action Council (MCCAC) took over the operation of The Dalles Pallet Shelter site. The shelter has served as a center for safety and stability for our most vulnerable community members during the difficult winter months we experience here in the Gorge. Not only has the shelter provided safety and stability but it has also provided an opportunity for transition and hope for the future. Since MCCAC took over the shelter in February, we have worked to provide shelter guests with access to other programs and services available throughout the community. These include behavioral health, medical and permanent housing opportunities. To date we have had seven (7) shelter guests transition into permanent housing; assisted five (5) guests with obtaining steady employment; four (4) of our guests are currently attending post-secondary education; and we have two (2) current guests who have received Housing Choice Vouchers from the Mid-Columbia Housing Authority and are searching for a permanent place to call home.
While we are incredibly grateful for the collaboration that has resulted in these outcomes, we approach the shelter closing deadline of March 31st with concern for our current guests who have no home or shelter to transition to. And we know that the City Council shares this concern and has been left with little to no options under that the existing land use system. With that concern I want to highlight that there is hope. The most immediate hope lies in House Bill 2006 (HB 2006) which is currently working its way through the Oregon Legislature. HB 2006 restablishes the shelter siting flexibility that was originally allowed (for a 90 day window) in 2020 by House Bill 4001. HB 2006 seems to have significant support across the state and among many other communities who have been put in a position very similar to ours. By my best estimate, HB 2006 could pass both the House and Senate floors by the end of April and be signed into law in early May. With its existing emergency clause, this legislation will go into effect immediately upon signing. Should this happen I would strongly urge the Council to open discussions to extend MCCAC’s use of the Dalles Pallet Shelter site to year round, as funding allows. MCCAC is committed to funding the site operations and I am proud to say that we were recently awarded over $3 million in Emergency Solutions Grant COVID-19 (ESG-CV) funds to provide services to our houseless friends and neighbors between now and June of 2022. This includes funding the year round operation of The Dalles Shelter site.
Lastly, as we begin to shutdown The Dalles Pallet Shelters, we will be working with the nine (9) shelter guests who are medically fragile to ensure they have access to a safe place to heal by providing hotel/motel vouchers. MCCAC will also be working to maintain connections with the shelter guests and provide them with on-going case management and resource referral. With the hope for a future reopening of the shelter site, our consistent contact will allow us to quickly place our houseless friends and neighbors into the shelter units as they come back online.
Again, I want to thank the City Council and Mayor Mays for your on-going support of MCCAC and the Pallet Shelter site. I urge you to contact our state legislators and encourage their support for the immediate passage of HB 2006. Because of your partnership, the shelter operation has been a great success and we look forward to many more years of collaboration.
In service to our community,
Kenny LaPoint, MCCAC Executive Director
