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PORTLAND, Ore. — Even though there are over 18,000 homeless people in Multnomah County, the City of Portland was recently forced to close its biggest overnight shelter due to budgetary constraints.
The decision to close the Northwest Northrup shelter has placed enormous strain on nearby Bethanie’s Room, which is turning away up to 10 people a night in need of a place to sleep.
The closure of Northrup has seen demand at Bethanie’s Room soar over the last week. Bethanie’s Room opened six months ago and can accommodate 75 people.
Northrup operated for only a year, but soaring costs and a community uproar over site mismanagement by the City of Portland and the Salvation Army ended in its closure.
There Will Be Nearly 200 Fewer Beds Available This Winter
Portland will have nearly 200 fewer emergency overnight shelter beds this winter. According to the City, there will be 580 beds compared to the 876 on offer the previous year.
Tidings Data Snapshot
Portland’s Winter Overnight Shelter BedsCity winter 2026/27 plan / Regular adult bedsNazarene includes its planned fall expansion. SE Grand Recovery and CityTeam Grand expect sobriety. Capacity does not indicate vacancies.
Source: City of Portland Shelter ServicesDailyTidings.com
However, despite budgetary constraints, the City will use ‘flex’ beds to accommodate 718 homeless people in its emergency overnight shelters, compared to 867 in 2025-26.
The City assures that ‘flex’ beds will continue to provide key overnight emergency accommodation, even though the number of these beds will be decreased slightly in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
According to its website, Portland Shelter Services staff will monitor demand, prepare for weather events when shelters experience an increase in the demand for emergency overnight beds, and will activate ‘flex’ beds as and when needed.
The Portland shelters operate on a first-come, first-served basis.
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