PHB updates: The storm is less severe than anticipated

Speaker As the next atmospheric river drains into our watershed, Lane County convenes its Severe Weather Collaborative. With our updates from the Poverty and Homelessness Board Dec. 18, we start with Brianna Rogers:

Brianna Rogers Brianna Rogers, she/her pronouns, program staff with Lane County Housing. Just wanted to give an update that Lane County staff were in cooperative calls, I think they’re being set up daily now, to support with the severe weather response. 

From that call today, Red Cross and local volunteers are standing up a shelter right now in the Upper McKenzie area. The coast is expected to be hit hard, and I have not heard of any shelter updates or requests at this time, requests for shelter. 

Red Cross did request mental health resources for those who are losing their housing, because their resources are currently tapped. And they were connected with Lane County Public Health and Behavioral Health for resources, and the Lane County Crisis Response Team as well. 

But we are going to continue to stay in those cooperative calls and talking with our community partners and local communities to assess the shelter needs across the different regions and areas. 

And then the Lane County Emergency Management has been sending out daily emails on weather updates, resources, sheltering updates, things like that, and those are going to be forwarded daily as they continue, to the Severe Weather Collaborative. 

James (Ewell) is going to be emailing those out or forwarding those out, and then we are going to monitor what response is needed. Right now James is going to be the lead. And then into the weekend and over next week, Kate Budd is going to be taking the lead on sheltering if anything does come up and just stay in close coordination with what the needs are.

Speaker Commissioner Pat Farr:

Commissioner Pat Farr That’s a great report, Brianna. We just concluded the emergency responders meeting, the ‘All Points’ group, and you covered it pretty well. The general reports around with it, it’s less severe than we’d anticipated it might be. However. We’re holding everything together. 

Heard from Red Cross, they gave the level of alert. But it’s not the high level of alert. But they did mention, and I’ll pass this out, that they have at least one family in need of mental health-supportive shelter throughout this event. So I’ll throw that out to anyone right now. If anybody has any information or anything that they can pass along to Red Cross, they would sure appreciate that.

Speaker Eugene’s Mayor Kaarin Knudson: 

Kaarin Knudson (Eugene, mayor) This is Mayor Knudson. I just wanted to add one other comment on the heels of Commissioner Farr’s remarks. And that follows up on conversations that we’ve been having in the city of Eugene about preparedness for the weather event. 

And this is a granular request, but one that probably works best through community. And just want to remind everyone that when we, when Lane County faced some flooding—that would have been last winter, not far from the time that we’re in now— there were cases where, certainly, flooding was extensive.

And also there were cases where on-site drainage on private property was not operating as it should, and in those cases created, you know, really a highly-localized experience of flooding within the city of Eugene. 

So, thinking of our members who are engaged with tenants and folks who might be wondering if/how their housing is prepared for the coming wet weather, to just remind people to reach out to their property owners and landlords to ensure that the drainage systems are clear. 

The city of Eugene, within our city limits, obviously will be very focused on making sure that the drainage in public spaces and public streets is operating as needed. But we can’t interface on private property. And there’s sometimes a link between those two things that absolutely has to be functioning for water to be flowing correctly. So just a note to everyone to be thinking about the different levels that this work has to happen in, in our watershed.

Speaker With an update from the Local Government Advisory Committee, Commissioner Pat Farr.

Commissioner Pat Farr It’s a committee that meets once a month, and the perspectives and views of the Poverty and Homelessness Board in Lane County joins with those from other counties throughout the state. 

Last week we met, and at that committee meeting was the director of OHA (Oregon Health Authority), the director of OHCS (Oregon Housing and Community Services), and the director of Department of Human Services, DHS. So these are the three directors of the three largest agencies at the state (outside of the public works agencies). And they were there to respond to the needs of counties—and counties being representing the municipalities also. 

What happened last week and what has been happening is that the County Financial Assistance Agreement that was put forward by the state: It was not acceptable. They were putting out, without going into detail, a large number of requirements without any levels of support for the services. Counties were not going to sign that agreement. 

Well, this week, early this week, the state did announce that they will be looking again at the County Financial Assistance Agreement (the CFAA), and it’s being put forward in a way that it looks like counties are going to be able to sign it through the work of counties working together. 

And Mayor Knudson, you’ve pointed out the importance of us working together locally and with other levels of government. The LGAC (Local Government Advisory Committee) is a place that we are able to do that, but we’re able to do it very specifically here around this table. 

And the things that happen at this table get parlayed to the other levels of government, and we really are able to get the very specific needs of the people providing the service in the municipalities and the counties. So it has been a really positive committee that we work on. It’s not highly publicized, but we do a good job, and things do happen. And your voices are heard at that level. 

That wasn’t my purpose in talking about it. I talked about who was there, the directors there, superstars, every one of them, but the real superstar of the last meeting was Maria Cortez, our own Maria Cortez, who made a wonderful presentation on MLK Commons and the evolution that has occurred at MLK Commons of how we’re able to support the needs of the people who are living there, while at the same time recognizing that the needs are varied and things evolve. So while the directors of all the agencies were there, Maria stole the show. I don’t know if Maria is listening, but pass it along. It was a really good presentation that Maria made.

Speaker From Trillium, the community outreach and engagement manager, Debi Farr:

Debi Farr (Trillium) Hi, everybody. Debi Farr (she/her). I’m the community outreach and engagement manager at Trillium. We have been hearing in the community that there is concern for those PacificSource members that will be transitioning to Trillium as of Feb. 1, who are unhoused and don’t currently have a way to get mail. 

So, I’m trying to put together just an informal group, to help us figure out the best way to get the member packets to these individuals. So, I was planning to send out an email just asking if you’d be interested in forming this ad hoc group. Just probably one meeting, but if you’re interested, just so that I can get some of your suggestions and ideas, because you’re the community that really knows how to approach this.

Speaker The board also welcomed its newest member, Veneta City Councilor Alexa Benson:

Alexa Benson (Veneta, PHB at-large elected position) I just really wanted to say: This is such a great opportunity. I come from a background of emergency medicine. I’m a registered nurse and a nurse practitioner. I worked in the ER for a very long time, so I have a lot of experience with mental health from a medicine perspective.

And then I decided to run for city council and somehow got elected, in the city of Veneta, a little town. 

And I really, I feel like poverty is something that as a society, we all share the burden. You know, poverty is everywhere, homelessness is everywhere, in every country. And it’s really up to us to determine to what extent we allow people to get to that point. 

And I would say my vision for why I joined is that we have a fairly decent outreach group for the unhoused. We call them, Fern Ridge Association For The Unhoused group, and we offer showers and meals and, clothing, washing clothing and stuff. And I’d love to be able to bring transitional housing into this area. And I’m looking for some type of mentorship and just connection with everybody and all of your knowledge and skills in order to make that happen. So thank you so much.

Speaker PHB members welcome Veneta City Councilor Alexa Benson, hear praise for Lane County’s Maria Cortez, and start collaborating on ways to contact folks who don’t have a mailing address.