Lane County and the City of Eugene say they’re about $4 million short of what’s needed to maintain existing homeless services after not receiving funds they expected from the state.
The region is losing at least 60 beds. One shelter in Eugene that provides longer-term services could close entirely.
That shelter, The Sandbox, is operated by nonprofit Carry It Forward. Founder and Assistant Director Arwen Maas-DeSpain said her organization was one of many that lost funds for beds, and the services that help people exit homelessness.
"It just impacts the whole population to not have funding for case management,” Maas-DeSpain said. “It means that the success rates of all of our agencies that are doing shelters is going to diminish.”
Maas-DeSpain said she’s still searching for placements for three Sandbox residents before funding runs out at the end of November. She said she’s hoping to find a private donor that could step in before the site is forced to close.
Lane County’s homelessness and community action manager, James Ewell, said the region was planning for more than $11 million from the state but received about $7.6 million instead.
He said the shortfall has led to a reduction of beds for unsheltered people, and job cuts for workers who provide the services that help people exit homelessness. Many of those programs were already under strain from cuts at the federal level, and other factors that impact the social safety net.
“Now is really the time for folks who care deeply about the wellbeing of folks in our community to do all that they can to help support these services,” Ewell said. “Because it's going to be a challenging winter, especially for folks that are in need of shelter.”
Eugene Housing and Homeless Communications Manager Amber Allan said the cut will likely amount to a 30% reduction in funding to local shelters across the system. She said many have already been shrinking their budget for months, and have very little left to cut.
"They're really down to the bare minimum, and really essentially only providing a place to sleep, shower, use the restroom, those basics, but not the additional supports,” Allan said.
A statement from Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek’s office said she was aware of the situation and her team was working with the county on solutions.
In an email to KLCC, Kotek spokesperson Roxy Mayer wrote that lawmakers funded homeless services 6% less than the governor recommended in her proposed budget, and based Lane County’s allocation on 2024 numbers. She said the legislature also cut funding for rehousing and prevention services.
“As the Governor has previously shared, the reduction in funding for those services will certainly produce reduced outcomes related to homelessness response services,” Mayer wrote.
Egan Warming Centers have also been impacted by the loss of funding. The county and St. Vincent de Paul originally feared they only had enough funds available to operate three sites.
In an email to volunteers Thursday, St. Vincent de Paul said it had received a donation that will allow them to operate the Lane Events Center as a warming shelter, as well as The Zone on Highway 99, the Mohawk Site and a youth site at First United Methodist Church.
ShelterCare’s Medical Recuperation program and Equitable Social Solutions’s Garden Way Medical Respite site have also been impacted by the funding shortfall.
Maas-DeSpain said The Sandbox takes referrals from other providers for people who don’t fit well in other programs. Losing the site, which has about a 70% success rate in placing its residents into permanent housing, will leave some with no options.
Maas-DeSpain said community members who want to get involved should reach out to local shelter providers to ask them what they need. She also urged those looking to get involved to reach out to their lawmakers to share the importance of funding homeless services.
“We have more homeless people on the street than we can help with our current beds,” Maas-DeSpain said. “Losing more beds means we have diminished ability to help folks.”
