Understanding the homeless crisis and what we can do about it - Part 5
Applying the Wrong Solution to Solving the Homeless Crisis
In the four previous posts, I presented the following arguments why Portland’s homeless crisis is far worse than most other cities in the country.
Part 1 – Three Common Misconceptions About Homelessness
Part 2 – Permissive Public Policies Inadvertently Encourage Homelessness to Thrive
Part 3 – Our Compassion Actually Enables the Homeless Crisis to Continue
Part 4 – The Real Causes of Homelessness
If you missed reading any of these posts, click on the links above.
So how do we best help the homeless get off the streets and into permanent housing? Our elected officials believe the solution to homelessness is Housing First.
The housing first approach to solving the homeless crisis
Housing First is the philosophical underpinning of our elected officials in Portland. 12 It is based on the belief that the homeless are victims of circumstance and inequality and simply needs a helping hand to improve their lives. As a result, Housing First advocates believe government should provide free or substantially subsidized housing for the homeless in perpetuity, with no expectations of sobriety, work, or participation in rehabilitation programs. According to this view, treatment for addiction and mental illness should be strictly voluntary.
In a July 28, 2022 article, Metro announced that 265 bond-funded housing units had recently become available to new residents with more on the way. 13 I’m sure that these new residents are very grateful that they are now living in these new apartments. And I am glad for them too. Reading their stories these renters sound like average everyday people. But unfortunately, they don’t represent the majority of the homeless who are living on our streets and are addicted or mentally ill. They represent a smaller subset of homeless individuals who are functional, who can lead normal lives if given a helping hand. These individuals benefit from the Housing First approach, but they are the easiest cases to address.
But what about providing permanent housing for the addicted and mentally ill? Will giving them housing, solve their underlying causes of homelessness?
Housing first results
In multiple studies, residents of Housing First programs showed no improvement regarding addiction and mental illness. 14 An Ottawa, Canada study between Housing First and a control group, that continued living on the street, reported the control group after 24 months had better results with substance abuse, mental health, and other quality of life factors than the Housing First group.15
Why? Housing First programs are deliberately not oriented toward recovery and rehabilitation. They operate on the “harm reduction” model.
What is the harm reduction model?
It is based on the belief that addiction is an involuntary brain disease, akin to Alzheimer’s or dementia. Any stigma associated with it is therefore an act of ignorance or cruelty. It assumes most people cannot recover from serious addiction and therefore, the social obligation is to provide the space and means for addicts to continue in their addiction.
Another consequence of the housing first approach
Those who believe in the Housing First approach focus their efforts on constructing expensive permanent housing and are opposed to shelters, which they consider inhumane. As a result, from 2011 to 2022 the number of shelter beds declined in Portland by 511 beds (1,485 to 974) or 34 percent. 16 Sadly, this reduction in shelter beds occurred during a decade when the need for emergency housing significantly increased.
Below are a couple of examples of applying the wrong solution to solving the homeless crisis.
Mayor Wheeler’s homeless plan
In November of 2022, Mayor Ted Wheeler proposed building 20,000 units of affordable housing over the next 10 years at an average cost of $490,000 per unit for a total cost of $9.8 billion. 17 In comparison, the average sales price of a single-family home in the Portland metro area is $450,000. It makes no sense to me why it costs so much to build affordable housing.
Governor Kotek’s homeless plan
Upon becoming the governor of Oregon, Tina Kotek declared a homeless state of emergency. I couldn’t agree with her more. Her solution? Governor Kotek proposes building 36,000 housing units throughout the state.18
In fairness to the mayor and to the governor, their homeless plans were much more comprehensive than just building more housing units. Nonetheless, the centerpiece of both proposals is to build more affordable housing units. Regardless, if the underlying causes of homelessness are not addressed, building very expensive “affordable housing units” will not solve the problem.
In my next post, I introduce four criteria that are necessary to successfully formulate policies that will mitigate homelessness. These are my thoughts. I welcome yours. What are your thoughts about Housing First?
Footnotes
12 Multnomah County’s groundbreaking plan for supportive housing clears key hurdle; https://www.multco.us/multnomah-county/news/multnomah-county%E2%80%99s-groundbreaking-plan-supportive-housing-clears-key-hurdle, February 22, 2021
13 Building for belonging, Metro’s housing bond is outpacing promises made to voters. July 28, 2022, https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/b08dbe20c2454ff1b2f6b7bb490b4b12?mc_cid=a7db4c5767&mc_eid=c0ff607240
14 No Way Home: The Crisis of Homelessness and How to Fix It with Intelligence and Humanity, page 83.
15 Rebecca A. Cherner, Tim Aubry, John Sylvestre, Rob Boyd, and Donna Pettey, “Housing First for Adults with Problematic Substance Use,” Journal of Dual Diagnosis 13, No. 3, September 2017: 219-229.
16 2013 & 2022 Multnomah County Point-in-Time Report
17 Establish key actions to increase affordable housing construction, Portland.gov, https://www.portland.gov/council/documents/resolution/adopted/37593
18 Gov. Kotek signs executive orders on homelessness, housing, https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/homeless/kotek-homelessness-state-of-emergency-oregon/283-d8bdd780-01fe-48fd-9dcf-f5a0a78dc3ef, Anthony Macuk (KGW), January 10, 2023