January 29

Dear Mayor Wheeler,

I am writing to you today to ask you to listen to the advocates who our attempting to save lives among the homeless, Steve Kimes, Ibrahim Mubarak ,and Lisa Lake.

 I grew up in North Portland. When I was a child in the 50s and 60s my family lived just a block from Peninsula Park on Commercial St. I enjoyed the pool there every summer. But for a couple of years it was transformed into a home for the Portland Zoo’s penguins while a new home was built for them at the zoo. Was that an ideal situation? Not to my mind as a child! But it was a sacrifice that was necessary to make our city a better place. In my opinion today’s homeless are more valuable than penguins, though I think the sacrifice made for the penguins was the right one.

When you are on the streets everyday helping those without housing you have a better idea than anyone else what will help.  Everyone agrees that ideal solutions are the best, but ideal solutions are often either too expensive or allow undo suffering while being developed. 

 I know many homeless who are trying very hard to meet the expectations of the housed in order to qualify for help. But when they are not allowed to live anywhere they can’t make progress. Please allow Village of Hope 2018 to remain in place. I drive by that area every week and I’ve never seen it used by anyone but homeless folks. And without support they do put stress on the environment, but with an organized village, crime will be minimized and damage will be reduced. 

And actually, it can be a shared space with the general population. Trying to keep the homeless out is like herding cats and a losing battle. Why not preserve the area by allowing advocates to assist? We can overcome this crisis if we are willing to live with less than perfect solutions for a season. The rules for living at the Village of Hope are strict.

 I am a 63 year old woman who has never been homeless. I will have no fear walking the trails of the Four Corners Natural Area, now that the Village of Hope is established. This is a step towards reclaiming the area for all of us by providing the homeless a space to be safe and receive the help they need for now.

Thank you for your ear,

Elsie Frani Grover- lifelong Portland Metro area resident

Mother of seven, grandmother of six