Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS), Oregon’s housing finance and community services agency, has funded 656 Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) homes since July of 2019. This number puts the agency ahead of schedule towards meeting the Permanent Supportive Housing target, which is one of six foundational priorities identified in Oregon’s Statewide Housing Plan.
In a recent speech to the March 4 graduates of the Supportive Housing Institute, Executive Director Margaret Salazar announced that two years into the agency’s five-year plan, the agency is more than halfway to meeting the ambitious target of funding 1,000 additional PSH homes within five years. The 2020-2021 class is the second group to graduate from the Institute and the only group to take part virtually as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Project teams in attendance included organizations from: Bend, Coos Bay, Medford/Grants Pass, Happy Valley, Portland, Salem, Tualatin and Ontario.
“Today, only two years into our plan, it’s so exciting to announce we are halfway to meeting our five year target — incredible!” said OHCS Executive Director Margaret Salazar. “We are deeply appreciative of Governor Kate Brown and the Oregon Legislature for investing in this forward-thinking approach to supportive housing to ensure all Oregonians have access to safe, stable, affordable housing.”
Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) is a national model and best practice for serving individuals and families experiencing chronic homelessness. By providing on-site, individualized services, PSH leads to cost savings in public systems, particularly within healthcare and justice systems, and long-term housing stability for vulnerable households.
Developing quality permanent supportive housing is a complex interdisciplinary undertaking. To support Oregon communities seeking to develop PSH, OHCS sponsored the Supportive Housing Institute which is coordinated and implemented by the Corporation for Supportive Housing. Within the Institute, CSH provides technical assistance and robust training to project teams focused specifically on Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) development and management.
After the launch of the Supportive Housing Institute in 2019, PSH expertise and developer capacity were greatly expanded. Funds were approved by the Oregon Housing Stability Council to eight project teams last April to fund the development, rental assistance and the connected services for 206 Permanent Supportive Housing units. Eighteen teams have graduated from the Supportive Housing Institute since 2019, greatly increasing our State’s capacity to develop and operate quality PSH.
This year’s teams were selected to participate in the five-month institute from across Oregon based on applications demonstrating a high demand for PSH in their communities. Together, 36 institute attendees refined plans and navigated the complex process of developing and operating housing with supportive services for households experiencing chronic homelessness. Eight teams gathered to pitch their final project presentations at the March 4, Supportive Housing Institute virtual graduation.
“The PSH Institute has been an exciting opportunity,” said Nicole Utz, a participant from the Salem Housing Authority. “The institute brings us all to the table. We see the work through each other’s lenses which is valuable training to better understand how to incorporate trauma-informed design, culturally responsive services and lived experience in providing wrap around supports to help our unsheltered neighbors.”
Governor Kate Brown’s recommended budget includes timely investments in PSH that will be vital to continuing to meet the ambitious PSH funding development goals that provide permanent housing solutions to Oregonians experiencing chronic homelessness.
