(Photo courtesy of Warm Springs Housing Authority)
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Project fully funded through partnerships with the State of Oregon, the Indian Health Service and the Bureau of Indian Affairs
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Housing to provide support for Tribal members experiencing chronic homelessness
Last week, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs’ Warm Springs Housing Authority officially opened a new Permanent Supportive Housing Project, which will provide dedicated, comprehensive support to dozens of Tribal members who are experiencing chronic homelessness.
With the support of the State of Oregon, who furnished a $4.1 million grant to fund its construction, the new housing community includes ten one-bedroom units designed for one or two people as well as a duplex for families experiencing homelessness.
Residents of this new community receive dedicated support through the addition of a Service Center, where members of the Tribe’s Behavioral Health team will provide counseling and case management support for tenants of the complex. In addition, the Bureau of Indian Affairs will fund road refurbishments leading up to the new facility.
In 2024 alone, 91 people on the Warm Springs reservation experienced homelessness, an increase of 18 people from the previous year. This mirrors national trends. Across the country, Native people experience the second highest rate of homelessness, 10%, despite only making up 1.5% of the U.S. population.
Existing resources across the country often fail to fully support Native people with comprehensive and culturally-responsive services. Yet when Tribes like the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs are given the resources necessary to build supportive housing and behavioral health centers, they’re able to not only house and care for vulnerable Tribal members but also ensure that members can stay within the community as they transition out of homelessness.
Project Details
- Five-acre complex at Park Place Court including:
- Ten one-bedroom 660 sq. ft. units for one-two individuals each
- One duplex on Wasco Street for families with children
- Behavioral health Service Center
“For our community members who face extensive barriers to transitioning out of homelessness, they not only need resources but to be among a community that cares,” said Danielle Wood, executive director of the Warm Springs Housing Authority. “As people move in, they’ll be exactly where they need to be to begin their journey towards recovery and stability. I thank our community, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Indian Health Service and the State of Oregon for making this possible.”
Our community is our family. It has always been our way to embrace our people, no matter their struggles or no matter who they are, at every point of their journey,” said Caroline Cruz, general manager of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Department of Health and Human Services. “This housing center is one more way in which we can ensure that everyone has the resources they need to thrive, with their community behind them every step of the way.”
About the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon:
The Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon is a federally-recognized, sovereign Indian tribe occupying the Warm Springs Reservation, which was reserved for its exclusive benefit by an 1855 Treaty with the United States. The Reservation stretches from the summit of the Cascade Mountains to the cliffs of the Deschutes River in Central Oregon.
warmsprings-nsn.gov/program/hud-and-tribal-housing • warmsprings-nsn.gov
