Welcome Center Closure to New Individuals and Families as of September 30, 2023
Dear Community Partners,
On behalf of ODHS, thank you for the support you have provided to guests living at the Welcome Center. With your partnership, we have been able to provide a safe, welcoming place for Oregon’s newest arrivals and support many on a path to making Oregon their permanent home.
Many of you already know that we will no longer accept new individuals and families in the Welcome Center as of Sept. 30, 2023. We will continue the Weekly Resource Pop-ups through the end of the year. Should circumstances change, we will provide an update.
The Oregon Legislature has instructed the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) to partner with Multnomah County (County) to transition up to 300 households currently staying at the Welcome Center (or on the Humanitarian Registry) into permanent community-based housing. Senate Bill 5506 designates Dec. 31, 2023, as the date for the Welcome Center to close.
ODHS recognizes the complexity and challenge of meeting the legislative goals and timelines. We want to ensure as we move forward, with direction from legislature and in collaboration with the County, that we stay centered on the individuals and families we are supporting at the Welcome Center.
New Humanitarian Registry
We are decommissioning the current waitlist and implementing instead a Humanitarian Registry for all individual and family households still seeking shelter. Community-based organizations, partners and individuals may use the Humanitarian Registry form to add an individual or family household. ODHS will use data from the registry to inform the Legislature about the number of individuals and families needing shelter and other services, as directed by Senate Bill 5506.
Tip: If a field is not applicable write N/A, or for a phone number 999-999-9999.
If you have questions or comments or need assistance with the referral form, please send an email to ospartnerships@odhs.oregon.gov
We also will continue to post project updates on the Humanitarian Transition Project webpage.
Longer-term solutions
We realize the closing of the Welcome Center leaves many questions about how to support people arriving in Oregon after Sept. 30, 2023. The ODHS Office of Immigrant and Refugee Advancement is convening a series of meetings with partners with the goal of developing proposals for the 2024 Legislative Session. For more information, please contact the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Advancement Director, Toc Soneoulay-Gillespie at Toc.Soneoulay-Gillespie2@odhs.oregon.gov.
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