Senate committee screens film and hears testimony on rising senior homelessness in Oregon

Salem — The Senate Housing and Development Committee on Feb. 24 held an informational meeting on rising elder homelessness in Oregon, screening the documentary No Place to Grow Old and hearing testimony from the film’s producers, people featured in the film and local service providers about immediate needs and longer-term policy options.

Committee members heard that older adults — many entering homelessness for the first time — are a rapidly growing share of people without stable housing and that the primary driver is lack of available affordable housing. "This is the fastest growing demographic entering into homelessness today," Michael Larson, executive director of the nonprofit Humans for Housing and an executive producer of the film, told the committee.

The film and witnesses described how fixed incomes, job loss, predatory lending and rising rents have left some older Oregonians unable to afford housing. "The Housing First model truly works," Bronwyn Carver, who appears in the film and spoke to the committee about her experience, said. Service providers urged a two-track approach: scale up long-term supportive…