Neighbors For A Better Pendleton will make its pitch to the city council next week.
A group of prominent Pendletonians is urging the city council to address homelessness, which they blame for driving business out of downtown and degrading the quality of life of all residents.
The group, Neighbors for a Better Pendleton, submitted a letter to city leaders earlier this summer encouraging them to pass no new services for homeless people downtown and to establish services outside downtown, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported this week.
The letter is signed on behalf of Neighbors for a Better Pendleton by Ryan DeGrofft, the regional development director for Business Oregon, the state’s economic development department.
“Pendleton’s growing population of homeless individuals with major substance abuse issues (homeless addicts) is having a negative impact on downtown businesses, and is causing a decline in quality of life for all of the city’s residents,” writes DeGrofft, a former chairman of the Pendleton Planning Commission. “Property crimes, vandalism, public use of drugs, intimidating behavior, and nuisance activities are daily occurrences downtown.”
An Aug. 6 press release by Neighbors for a Better Pendleton encourages concerned residents to attend the next meeting of the Pendleton City Council, Aug. 19, when group member Pat Gregg will give a presentation outlining the group’s recommendations. Members say they’re driven by what they call the rising visibility of homelessness, misuse of public space and “troubling lack of accountability for criminal behavior.”
The group hopes that changes to the law will lead homeless people to move elsewhere without affecting the services they currently receive.
“Our position is clear: We are not trying to push people away or deny services to those in need,” the statement reads. “We support providing help for those experiencing homelessness, addiction, or mental health challenges. Our proposal calls for no new services to be placed within the downtown area. This will not impact any current services or reduce support for those who need it. Instead, it would prevent further concentration of services in the central business district by encouraging future facilities to locate outside the core, while remaining accessible.”
Gregg and DeGrofft both serve on the board of the Pendleton School District.
A January point-in-time count showed around 500 people without housing in Umatilla and neighboring Morrow County, OPB reported. But housing costs in Pendleton are high relative to income, with 500 new homes needed to keep pace with future housing demand.
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