Tag: Spencer Knowles

Community, New Business

Oak Street Village Shelter Opens

On February 19th, representatives from Multnomah County, the City of Portland, and Montavilla community leaders joined the Oak Street Village shelter operators at 333 SE 82nd Avenue for a ribbon-cutting ceremony. This event officially opened the temporary shelter site that can house up to 40 adults in 29 sleeping pods with 33 parking spots so residents can store their personal vehicles. This opening follows years of delays while the Joint Office of Homeless Services, now transitioning its name to the Multnomah County Homeless Services Department (HSD), worked through its community outreach efforts to sufficiently include area residents and business owners in a Good Neighbor Agreement (GNA).

  • ADA parking next to accesible pods
  • 24-hour staffed office
  • Accessibel restroom

Before invited guests help cut the ribbon, marking Oak Street Village‘s launch, they addressed the gathered crowd of neighborhood visitors and TV news crews. Montavilla East Tabor Business Association president Neil Mattson and Montavilla Neighborhood Association president Laura Mulligan both expressed their appreciation for the efforts undertaken to develop a GNA that should mitigate many concerns Montavilla residents and business people expressed in the several community meetings held ahead of opening this shelter site. They also voiced their appreciation for the support of Multnomah County Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards, who helped align the site’s construction schedule with the community outreach and GNA work. When addressing the crowd, Commissioner Brim-Edwards remarked on the success of the community engagement’s outcome.

  • Montavilla East Tabor Business Association president Neil Mattson
  • Montavilla Neighborhood Association president Laura Mulligan
  • Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards
  • Commission Chair Jessica Vega Pederson
  • Pastor Dwight Minnieweather
  • HSD Director Dan Field

Multnomah County Commission Chair Jessica Vega Pederson joined Commissioner Brim-Edwards in stressing the importance of shelters like Oak Street Village in addressing homelessness. The County’s efforts to address the housing crisis include layers of support that attempt to prevent people from losing their housing and transition people off the street through various shelter formats. This unique village configuration allows those living in cars to move into more suitable shelters with electricity, heating, and cooling. The Pallet shelter branded sleeping pods have locking doors and an integrated bed. Oak Street Village also offers residents trash services, showers, restrooms, laundry facilities, and a communal kitchenette in shipping container-style units surrounding the site. Similar shelters offer the same amenities, but this location allows people to keep their vehicles, which may be their most valuable possessions. Giving up a personal car can remove one’s ability to find employment or travel to places to receive services. Oak Street Village’s configuration may better support certain people’s transition back to regular housing and jobs by not requiring them to give up their vehicles before receiving help.

  • Inside sleeping pod
  • Shower room
  • Pet relief area

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson celebrated this shelter’s opening and thanked the Montavilla Neighborhood for its support. His fondness for the community predates his elected position. While running for office, he helped open the PDX Saints Love Day Services Center across the street from Oak Street Village. Both locations complement the Mayor’s plan to end unsheltered homelessness in the city. He also thanked the former Montavilla Neighborhood Association president, Spencer Knowles, for his work bringing the neighbors into the GNA process for both facilities. Knowles stepped down from the board to take a position on Portland City Councilor Steve Novick’s staff. Knowles and Councilor Novick attended Oak Street Village’s opening ceremony along with Portland City Council Vice President Tiffany Koyama Lane.

  • Council Vice President Tiffany Koyama Lane
  • Councilor Steve Novick

Pastor Dwight Minnieweather leads this shelter’s service provider, Straightway Services. His remarks focused on the importance of encouraging people to see their self-worth. He shared his story of addiction recovery from decades ago and how it was the words of one person who set his life back on track. He intends to offer the same supporting guidance to as many people as possible coming through his shelter. His organization recently rented office space across SE 82nd Avenue from the county-owned shelter site, and he intends to make roots in the community. HSD Director Dan Field spoke about his appreciation for Pastor Minnieweather’s commitment to his work and acknowledged that as a black man, Minnieweather faced heightened expectations. Field also talked about the challenges of creating shelters like Oak Street Village while being good stewards of public funds, and he thanked all those public employees involved for their dedication to delivering this project.

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson

Residents and staff will soon begin moving into the Oak Street Village. Outreach specialists invite people to become residents, prioritizing people living in a vehicle, excluding recreation vehicles or motor homes. Straightway Services will focus on serving people in the Montavilla area first before inviting others from around Portland, ensuring the shelters keep people in their chosen communities and reduce unsheltered homelessness around the Village site. People should anticipate seeing activity at 333 SE 82nd Avenue within the coming weeks as people slowly take residence at Oak Street Village.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

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Community, Government

MNA Election and Bylaws Update

On November 12th, the Montavilla Neighborhood Association (MNA) held its annual election, adding two new board members and reelecting Louise Hoff for another two-year term. The membership also voted to update language in the group’s bylaws to remove membership term limits and mail notification requirements for shorter annual meeting notices, along with other minor updates. Due to an access issue, the in-person meeting was relocated from its planned location to Montavilla Brew Works at 7805 SE Stark Street.

New board members Steph Cleary and Colleen Howard received unanimous approval from 21 ballots, as did the write-in incumbent Louise Hoff. Cleary is a freelance writer and is a former high school English teacher. She will take on the Secretary board position, freeing former Secretary Spencer Knowles to take the newly renamed leadership position of board President. Howard has lived in Montavilla for 40 years and is a retired nurse. She wants to use her sense of strong community involvement to keep Montavilla a “great place for everyone.” Hoff, a former board chair, will continue to lead the Parks committee for the neighborhood. Sarah Hartzel will continue in the Treasurer position, and Laura Mulligan will remain in the second leadership position with its new designation as board Vice President. Hartzel will continue to serve as the Neighborhood Coalition Delegate until another board member takes on that role and the SE Uplift board accepts their nomination from the MNA.

Neighborhood Coalition Executive Director for SE Uplift, Nanci Champlin, oversaw the election and provided the posted notice of the venue change at the Montavilla United Methodist Church. Montavilla Brew Works opened its covered outdoor seating for the MNA members and turned on their heater, quickly warming the space during the rainy night. A few members purchased pints to support the business offering last-minute meeting accommodations.

Prior to the elections, Spencer Knowles presented the proposed bylaws updates. The bylaws remained unchanged since its last review in 2015, and community concern over membership eligibility requirements expressed during the 2023 board elections prompted a reevaluation. All but two members voting by raised hands approved the bylaws edits. In the changes, the MNA determines eligibility by an adult person’s primary residence, rented or owned, existing in the Montavilla boundary. Owners of property or a business are allowed membership. Alternatively, one representative from a business or organization within the neighborhood can join on that group’s behalf. The updates also removed the three-year term limit on membership, allowing people to retain members until they are no longer eligible. Neighborhood youths 14 to 17 can become members with parental permission, and anyone can still request membership exceptions from the board to join.

The bylaws no longer require an Election Committee to manage elections, shifting that responsibility to the board. Updates to the board officers listed in the bylaws now use the term “President” instead of “Chair” and added Neighborhood Coalition Delegate to the list of officers. In other new language, the bylaws retain the required seven-day member notices of an upcoming Annual Meeting but no longer need that notice to happen by Postal mail if not presented within 30 to 60 days by communication in another form. People can review all updates that include minor word changes in the proposed bylaws document.

Although the annual election is the most efficient way for people to join the MNA board, processes allow mid-term board appointments. People wanting to serve should contact the MNA to learn more. Perpetual free general membership is now as simple as attending a meeting and affirming that you meet the requirements and want to join. The MNA recommends people subscribe to the non-profit’s email newsletter to stay up to date. More information is available at montavilla.org.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Disclosure: the author of this article served as MNA Board Chair until 2023

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