Homelessness Planning Council votes to send executive committee's downsizing recommendation to general membership with lived-experience requirement

The Homelessness Planning Council on a voice vote approved sending the executive committee's recommendation to downsize the council to the general membership, and members added a requirement that at least four voting seats be held by people with lived experience of homelessness.

The vote followed public comment, a presentation of process questions, and more than an hour of discussion about attendance, governance and how any downsizing would be implemented. Council members repeatedly said they wanted clearer rules on how seats would be reduced and whether the ordinance or the council's governance charter must be changed before a membership vote.

Why it matters: The council was created by Metro ordinance and serves as the local body that guides continuum-of-care strategy and coordination. Council members said attendance problems and the size of the body have hampered decision-making; opponents urged caution to preserve representation of people with lived experience.

Public commen…