Mountain View Safe Parking program reports rehousing gains; county staff to return with Redmond lease renewal

Bend/Redmond — Mountain View Community Development and county staff updated the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners on March 31 about Safe Parking and micro‑shelter operations and sought board direction on lease renewal for a Redmond site.

County Property Management introduced program partners and Mountain View Executive Director Rick Russell said the program has helped people transition from unsheltered conditions into housing: “over the last two and a half years, we've had 184 people exit Safe Parking. And 95 of those were into permanent housing,” Russell reported, describing an overall rehousing rate of just over 50 percent for program exits.

Program staff described the network of sites and rules: micro‑shelters and vehicle sites operate across Bend and Redmond with housing‑focused case management, site conduct expectations (quiet hours, no on‑site drugs/alcohol, weekly case‑manager check‑ins) and ancillary services (showers, laundry). They said 26 micro‑shelters were purchased with 20 in use now, nightly occupancy across sites around 50–60 people, and the program's average length of stay in 2025 was 4.7 months.

A program participant, Michael Turner, described his experience: he said he became homeless during the COVID period, engaged with case managers after entering a micro‑shelter and was able to secure a rental despite past barriers. Turner also identified with Shepherd's House, saying his recovery and current outreach work demonstrate the program's role as a pathway to housing.

County staff said they will return with a consent‑agenda item to memorialize a recurring two‑year term extension for the Seventh & Evergreen (Redmond) site; commissioners debated whether to limit future renewals to one year to allow regular board oversight. One commissioner said she did not support county parcels being used for the sites, while other board members praised the program's cost effectiveness and rehousing outcomes. Staff emphasized reliance on state shelter program funding (SSP) and matching grants to sustain operations.

What happens next: staff will prepare a consent item to document the proposed two‑year renewal for the Redmond site and will continue the Safety Campus 90‑day review and neighborhood outreach. No final lease vote was taken at the March 31 meeting.