Multnomah County briefs commissioners on winter preparedness; plans for 1,300—1,400 shelters and staffing changes

The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners received a briefing on winter severe-weather preparedness, shelter activation thresholds and operational changes designed to keep people safe during cold events.

Chair Veil Peterson said she has requested coordination with the City of Portland on transportation support, concurrent staffing recruitment and use of community centers for emergency shelters. "I expect and look forward to shared commitment," the chair said, describing the county's approach as partnership-driven.

Chris Voss, Director of Emergency Management, described how the county monitors multiple indicators when deciding whether to activate shelter resources: daytime highs and wind chill, precipitation type, rapid temperature fluctuations after warm periods, gradients across the county, emergency-department visits and 9-1-1 data. Voss said the county uses a 25-degree Fahrenheit threshold as a primary indicator but builds flexibility into decision-making: "the COO and/or their designee may consider other conditions or circumstances during a severe weather event that could increase risk to the community," he said.

Voss said Multnomah County plans for roughly 1,300 shelter beds in a large activation and is prepared to stretch toward 1,400 beds as needed. The county has short-term lease agreements with multiple sites, supplements congregate shelters with hotel placements when appropriate, and is continuing a policy introduced after last year's January event to "staff through" an activation so sites are less likely to close during prolonged events. The county also cited a recent use of a state facility during a major event and said the state opened that location earlier than planned to meet urgent need.

Deputy Director Rachel Perrell (Department of County Human Services) summarized staffing and outreach work: county ESF-6 (Emergency Support Function 6) expanded person-in-charge capacity, increased recruitments for on-call roles and created post-activation debriefs to retain and support staff. She said 56% of shifts during a January activation were filled by county employees, and the county has increased training and volunteer outreach, including upcoming public information sessions and a volunteer info/training event scheduled for Jan. 30.

Anna Plumb, deputy director for the Homeless Services Department, confirmed that the East County Homeless Resource Center will continue to provide severe-weather capacity during construction and that the planned site design includes about 90 severe-weather beds on the top floor after the build-out.

Commissioners asked about thresholds, regional differences and staffing sustainability. Commissioner Moyer asked why Multnomah uses a 25-degree trigger; Voss said threshold decisions are based on health-data trends and the agency's review of emergency-department and EMS data. Commissioner Broom Edwards praised changes that add flexibility and welcomed the City of Portland's commitments to staffing and transportation support.

The briefing included operational details and contact points for commissioners. No formal action was required; staff said they would continue coordination with the City of Portland, the Joint Office, contracted shelter providers and state partners and will return with operational updates as conditions change. Officials invited commissioners to help share volunteer recruitment materials and noted ongoing efforts to make shelter operations more resilient and easier to staff in future activations.