Housing & Homelessness

The City of Eugene continues to deal with homelessness.  Recently, this included sending out crews with the Lane County Sheriff's Department, Eugene Police, and the city's Parks and Open Spaces staff to gather and transport heavy amounts of waste that could endanger the environment or visitors.

The Executive Director of ShelterCare will retire at the end of this year. Susan Ban has led the human-services agency in the Eugene-Springfield community for over 28 years. As KLCC’s Tiffany Eckert reports, the announcement gives staff and volunteers opportunity to reflect on her work.

A Eugene Church recently broke ground on phase 2 of their housing initiative to help people in need of homes. The project comes a year after the congregation helped change a city land-use code. 

Business owners downtown are often tasked with cleaning up trash and waste left by transients. As KLCC’s Brian Bull reports, a new program aims to tackle that problem.

On Monday the Eugene City Council will consider changing an ordinance on overnight rest stops for the unhoused. The proposal would affect where the sites are located.

A small homeless camp could soon be set up on a corner of the Lane County Fairgrounds.

An online apartment locator and rental advisement service ranks Oregon first among states where it may be more affordable to rent than buying a home.

Homeless campers living in a row of tents in downtown Eugene say they are there in protest. The campers object to the lack of shelter in the city center and claim mistreatment by local business owners.

A community meeting will be held in Corvallis next Thursday in order to decide on bylaws for a homelessness advisory council. It’s designed to assess, plan and respond to homelessness issues in Benton County.

The latest point in time homeless count found that in Lane County more than 2,100  people are without adequate housing. People who are unhoused face challenges to their health, safety and well-being. 

Homelessness in Lane County continues to rise, according to the latest Point-In-Time Count. The annual tally took place in January, it’s meant to give an estimate of how many people are living without homes.

Lincoln County Board of Commissioners has approved funds to buy a vacant house in an effort to reduce recidivism in Newport. The home will provide stable housing for men at risk of homelessness after serving time.

Local emergency first responders partnered with mental health and homeless advocates to build a temporary housing hut in downtown Eugene.  Police Chief Chris Skinner says this is an example of 21st century policing.

Following an unexpected loss of federal funding, a Eugene-area non-profit for runaway and homeless youth is getting a local boost.

Not all homeless youth sleep on city benches or in tents. In fact, advocates say most unhoused kids in Lane County “couch surf” from place to place. And that makes them hard to identify and help.

In the final part of our series, “Hidden in Plain Sight,” KLCC’s Tiffany Eckert introduces us to a Eugene teen who became parentless and homeless before caring adults stepped in to help.

Every homeless kid out there has a story. In Part 2 of our series, “Hidden in Plain Sight,” KLCC’s Tiffany Eckert shares the difficult experiences of a Springfield run-away teen who spent years living in the woods and on the streets-- before getting the social support that changed her life.

Homelessness is a pressing social issue confronting communities around the country and across Oregon. In Lane County, officials acknowledge a growing number of the homeless population are youth.

In part one of our series, “Hidden in Plain Sight,” KLCC’s Tiffany Eckert shares the story of a young man who was homeless after he was kicked out of his house as a teen-- and the advocate who helped him get off the streets.

Organizations working to end youth homelessness in Lane County face increased need and limited resources. The county is applying for a grant through the Department of Housing and Urban Development which could amount to multi-millions to address the issue.

A retired pastor is holding vigil in downtown Eugene over this holiday weekend to bring attention to the plight of people who are homeless. 

An ordinance that would have fined motorists for giving or accepting items from pedestrians on the roadside was rejected by the Eugene City Council. 

A Eugene nonprofit broke ground on a new tiny home housing project, last Friday. The aim is to reduce homelessness and recidivism while keeping sustainability in mind. 

St. Vincent de Paul in Eugene completed renovations on their 10th home for their Veterans' Housing Project. The organization acquires and rehabs old houses for local veterans.