Multnomah County was given $25 million by the Oregon Legislature to fund a “deflection” center, where people violating the state’s drug laws could opt to be taken. The idea is they could sober up there, rather than be put in jail. But the county’s failed leadership is taking its time, focusing on irrelevant questions like what to name the facility, rather than prioritizing getting it up and running as soon as possible.
Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards and outgoing commissioner Sharon Meieran deserve credit for trying their best to push the chair to take timely action to improve the lives of those drug users, and that of the community at large.
According to this article from Willamette Week, the county will take a “phased approach” to implementing the center:
https://www.wweek.com/news/2024/07/11/sobering-center-wont-sober-people-until-mid-2025
This is unacceptable. This should be up and running by the end of the month. We can’t wait for these kinds of crucial issues to be addressed.
If the chair can’t get things done in a timely manner, she should resign and let someone else do the job.