In a May letter, Gov. Tina Kotek and Rep. Earl Blumenauer urged Portland and Multnomah County to appoint an addiction czar. But local leaders want funding instead.
This week, signs emerged that the city will eventually gain 17 new sobering and stabilization beds for people on drugs and experiencing mental health crises.
The additional beds represent a sliver of what’s needed following a years-long effort to try to replace Central City Concern’s Sobering Station that abruptly closed in December 2019 following dozens of accounts of people harming themselves in isolation cells.