Hillsboro-area business owner urges county to pause homeless services expansion, cites safety and overdose concerns

A local business owner told the Washington County Board of Commissioners on Dec. 17 that businesses near a Project Homeless Connect site are experiencing increased disorder and safety problems and asked the board to pause planned expansion.

Trish Raby, who identified herself as with Raby Family Dentistry and representing local businesses, said staff and customers "do not feel safe" and described feces and trash on properties and increased overdoses. "The overdoses have gone up by 95 percent in the area," Raby told the board, citing conversations with Chief Coleman and local law enforcement; she also said she had discussed concerns with Mayor Pace and Sergeant Aaron McGyver.

Raby said the neighborhood historically was safe and described new security measures by local businesses, including taser training and controlled entry for customers. She told the commissioners that law enforcement is at "max capacity" and warned that building a larger homeless-services facility without risk controls and governing rules could worsen local impacts. She urged the board to "put a pause on this" and to require a risk-management tool and fuller analysis of trickle-down effects before moving forward.

Chair Harrington and the clerk acknowledged Raby's comments and thanked her for speaking; the board did not take immediate action in response during the meeting. The comment was delivered during the meeting's public comment period; no formal staff report or vote on a homeless-services facility occurred at the Dec. 17 business meeting.