State Funding Cuts Reduce Warming Center Capacity, Strain Local Shelters

St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lane County plans to operate the Egan Warming Centers during cold nights this winter, but the program will serve far fewer people after a 50 percent reduction in state support. The organization lost $151,000 for the year, forcing officials to scale back capacity at sites that historically sheltered hundreds on nights with severe cold.

Lane County is confronting a larger funding cliff that has seen its state allocation for homeless services fall from $15 million last fiscal year to $7.6 million for the current fiscal year that began July 1. County officials have asked the state for an additional $7.7 million to sustain providers locally, part of a broader $24 million request that also includes Multnomah, Benton and central Oregon counties. If the Oregon Housing and Community Services agency backs the request, the agency would need to seek approval from the Legislature’s Emergency Board to release the funds.

The county distributes those state dollars to nonprofits like St. Vincent de Paul to run shelters and outreach programs. For the Egan program, the impact is immediate. The warming centers usually serve between 400 and 450 people a night during activations. This winter preliminary estimates put reduced capacity at roughly 250 people a night. Bill Barnard, the organization’s director of operations, said, “We’re just very hopeful that we have a mild winter. If it was like last winter, you know, we could very well be in trouble. Last year we had 31 days of activations.”

Warming centers are activated when overnight temperatures are forecast to drop below 30 degrees. During activations volunteers open sites for the evening through morning, offering sleeping pads and blankets, warm drinks and meals. The agency will use the Lane Events Center at the fairgrounds as a primary Egan shelter site when it is available. Two new primary sites will join that capacity, one called The Zone at 530 Highway 99 N in Eugene, and a modular tent shelter in Springfield located in the parking lot of the former WareMart at Mohawk and Centennial boulevards. Each of those sites can shelter about 100 guests. The program also maintains a youth warming location for minors at First United Methodist Church in Eugene. Lane Transit District will continue to provide free transportation to and from Egan shelters.

Fewer beds on the coldest nights have direct public health consequences. People who cannot access warming centers face increased risk of hypothermia and exposure related illness, which can in turn strain emergency medical services and hospital resources. Cuts to outreach and related services also reduce access to case management and connections to longer term housing solutions, exacerbating disparities for those already facing housing insecurity.

Nonprofit providers are relying on volunteers and donors to fill gaps, but service reductions underscore a larger policy question about how state funding decisions shape the safety net for Lane County residents. The county and local advocates are urging the state to consider emergency funding to avert worse outcomes if the winter proves harsh.