UPDATE: At the March 20th BOCC meeting, Commissioners voted 2 - 1 to direct staff to look for an alternate location for the sex offender-centric shelter at 640 SE Wilson Ave, on the east side of Bend. Thank you Commissioners Adair and DeBone for listening to residents and voting for making a change. Commissioner Chang voted against this motion.
For details about this facility, see our Parolee Shelter page. The county's official statement about this vote is here.
This issue will be up for discussion again at a Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners meeting in about 1 month. Please plan to make your voice heard! You can also sign the Change.org petition against this shelter in a family friendly neighborhood. Thank you to the many community members that took the time to share their opinions and make their voices heard.
We truly believe that working together, we can find a better solution for providing taxpayer funded housing to this population of adult male parolees.
We truly believe that working together, we can find a better solution for providing taxpayer funded housing to this population of adult male parolees.
Please see our new pages dedicated to News and Solutions & Public Comments
And, see our new page with a neighbor's proposal for Wards for Bend City Council
And, see our new page with a neighbor's proposal for Wards for Bend City Council
If local governments are going to take on the task of housing the poor, they should do it equitably in all ways, or perhaps not do it at all. What do you think?
For years, the City of Bend and Deschutes County governments have ramped up efforts to provide temporary/supportive/transitional housing & other resources to those in need. As time goes by, it has become increasingly clear that these government entities are repeatedly targeting the same traditionally under-served, under-represented, and marginalized east side neighborhoods of Bend to play host to an ever-growing list of proposed/planned/established facilities.
This site exists to document and broadcast this activity by our local governments and enable all county residents to draw their own conclusions. As residents of one of the most affected neighborhoods (the area surrounding the Bend Parks and Recreation Vince Genna Stadium property) we live everyday with the realities of what this activity has already done to our neighborhood. It's not that we are opposed to having any of these facilities nearby; one or two were in place when most of us purchased or rented our homes. It is the rapidly increasing concentration of these facilities in a single geographic area that should be a concern for all.
There are several reasons why this is a bad approach:
If you want to help stop the latest shelter from taking root, please consider taking a moment to sign a Change.Org petition against a proposed county shelter in Larkspur specifically designed for males on parole.
This site exists to document and broadcast this activity by our local governments and enable all county residents to draw their own conclusions. As residents of one of the most affected neighborhoods (the area surrounding the Bend Parks and Recreation Vince Genna Stadium property) we live everyday with the realities of what this activity has already done to our neighborhood. It's not that we are opposed to having any of these facilities nearby; one or two were in place when most of us purchased or rented our homes. It is the rapidly increasing concentration of these facilities in a single geographic area that should be a concern for all.
There are several reasons why this is a bad approach:
- Concentration of facilities and services for the needy has been tried before and failed. Think Old Town in Portland, the Tenderloin in San Francisco, and Skid Row in LA. Despite millions upon millions of taxpayer dollars, and decades of efforts in all 3 cities, the problems attempting to be solved are worse than ever. This model that the City of Bend and Deschutes County governments are replicating on the east side of Bend has already been proven not to work. Why are politicians and city and county government employees doing this?
- Poverty frequently follows a generational cycle. When government intentionally concentrates poverty, it reinforces this pattern. This is government designed economic segregation. It can also be thought of as a socio-economic form of redlining of these lower income and more diverse neighborhoods in the city. Segregation is not the answer. Please read this article published (08/01/2022) in the NY Times. It suggests that a real solution lies somewhere outside the world of segregation.
Vast New Study Shows a Key to Reducing Poverty: More Friendships Between Rich and Poor
(Summary: An analysis of 21 billion Facebook friendships, covering 84 percent of U.S. adults aged 25 to 44, puts cross-class relationships at the heart of income mobility.) - Progressive (advancing) local governments would use their planning and financial resources to encourage the intermixing of different socioeconomic groups because the long-term effects are healthier and more sustainable for the entire community. Regressive local governments cling to dis-proven models of doling out their planning and financial resources, ignoring the damage such an approach inflicts on repeatedly targeted and already marginalized neighborhoods. Where are the truly progressive leaders in this city and county? Anyone?
- Do we want to live in a community with local governments that use tax dollars to so effectively segregate different socioeconomic groups? This is not a sustainable, equitable, or just approach, and it is detrimental to the long-term health of our community. It's simply not fair.
- Residents of these targeted neighborhoods have every right to the same level of representation from City and County government as residents in more favored and affluent neighborhoods. We also have every right to the same property value and public safety protections afforded residents in more favored sections of the City and County. Enough!
- A 1,000 foot buffer between transitional housing/shelter facilities was in place until 2021 when the Bend City Council changed city code to remove that buffer. Immediately re-establish the 1,000 foot buffer between neighboring transitional housing/shelter facilities. (More details about City Council's removal of this buffer can be found on the 2021 Code Changes page.)
- Close down and relocate existing facilities that violate the 1,000 foot buffer.
- Move at least 50% of all existing transitional housing/shelter facilities out of the Larkspur Neighborhood. Move them into ALL QUADRANTS of Bend.
- Establish a robust public notification process for any facilities that are currently planned and ALL future facilities that will be considered anywhere in Deschutes County. The public is paying for all of these facilities and has every right to be thoroughly ENGAGED BEFORE these facilities pop-up in their neighborhoods.
If you want to help stop the latest shelter from taking root, please consider taking a moment to sign a Change.Org petition against a proposed county shelter in Larkspur specifically designed for males on parole.