Pressure is mounting from critics of a planned drug use deflection center who say it lacks good planning and transparency.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Pressure is mounting from critics of a planned drug use deflection center who say it lacks good planning and transparency.
The deflection center, which is being championed by Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson, has gotten pushback from not only Buckman Neighborhood residents but also fellow county commissioners.
The idea is to open the deflection center so that people caught with small amounts of hard drugs can choose to seek treatment instead of going to jail. That's why the center is set to open on Sept. 1, the same day the law that allows the drug treatment option, HB 4002, goes into effect. That law will also reintroduce criminal penalties for drug possession in Oregon.
However, the $25 million deflection center, located off of Southeast Sandy Boulevard and 500 feet from a preschool, won't even offer sobering services until 2025.
"This building, the temporary site, doesn't have services. And we don't even have services to refer people to,” said Multnomah County Commissioner Sharon Meieran.
"This is not the County's plan, it's the Chair's plan to date," added Multnomah County Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards.
Chair Vega Pederson’s deflection center plan was drafted with Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt, Portland Police Chief Bob Day and others. But the Phase 1 of the plan shows the site won't accept heavily intoxicated people nor will it offer sobering services — at first.
Phase 2 of the plan, which won't be introduced until next year, will add 24-hour sobering services and medication to combat addiction. The county is still working out what engagement is required outside of merely screening the people referred to the center.
"I expect that the commission would be voting on what constitutes deflection. And that actually includes real expectations or requirements of those who are voluntarily choosing to be deflected versus being arrested,” said Commissioner Brim-Edwards.
Commissioners’ concerns voiced during a Multnomah County Board Meeting on Thursday echoed sentiments expressed at a meeting between commissioners and the Buckman Neighborhood Association on Wednesday night.
Commissioner Brim-Edwards said during Thursday's meeting that the county failed to make the community aware of a public comment opportunity amid next week's vote on renovation funding for the center.
"The legislature gave the county a very sizable amount of money to stand up deflection system and sobering services. And the Commission needs to act with urgency and get it right," Brim-Edwards said.
Chair Vega Pederson acknowledged the communication error as a simple oversight, saying her team sent a public comment notice to community members in an email Thursday morning. The upcoming board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, July 25.
