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Neighbor urges perimeter security and sanitation fixes at Moore Street shelter, complaints span safety and nuisance issues
Summary
A nearby resident told Portland City Council on Oct. 1 that the Moore Street shelter’s move to a street-facing entrance and inadequate perimeter management have produced frequent low-level crime, sanitation problems and loitering; councilors said they would work with the mayor's office to tighten services and enforcement.
PORTLAND — At the Portland City Council public comment period on Oct. 1, Carrie Henderson, who said she has lived across from the Moore Street shelter for 13 years, urged the city to reinstate perimeter security and fix sanitation and access arrangements at the facility.
Henderson said she supports shelter services but described “ongoing low-level criminal activity” and a decline in neighborhood livability since the shelter moved its entrance from a large parking lot to Moore Street in July. She described seeing open drug use, public indecency including public urination, trespassing, and violent incidents that she reported to 911 but said police sometimes did not respond.
Henderson also told the council that porta-potties had been left directly outside the shelter entrance and that plumbing at the shelter was inadequate for the number of participants. She asked why the site was selected despite limited plumbing and why the shelter had been placed within about 1,000 feet of a high school and across from a daycare.
“Bringing unsheltered guests into a low-barrier shelter without this additional security is unacceptable and makes neighbors feel unsafe,” Henderson said. She asked the city to work with neighbors to “find a workable solution.”
Councilor Dan Ryan acknowledged the concerns and told Henderson that councilors would work with the mayor’s office “to tighten up those reinforcements” so neighbors can feel safer. At least one other councilor noted that many of these concerns have been raised previously to neighborhood councilors and bureau staff.
Why it matters: Public safety, sanitation and the location and management of low-barrier shelters are ongoing issues for Portland neighborhoods. Henderson’s account raises operational questions — perimeter staffing, site infrastructure and coordination with police and shelter services — that can affect both shelter users and nearby residents.
Next steps: Councilors present pledged to follow up with the mayor’s office and shelter services on perimeter management, enforcement coordination and infrastructure issues at the Moore Street shelter; staff-level outreach or briefings were requested by councilors.
