Portland City Council Approves Opioid Settlement Funds for Riverside Winter Warming Shelter

Portland City Council approves industrial park warming shelter as winter approaches

The Portland City Council has voted to fund a winter warming shelter at 166 Riverside Industrial Parkway, opting for a controversial $735,000 appropriation of opioid settlement funds to secure a location after previous plans collapsed. The 7-2 decision, announced Monday, aims to provide a no-barrier shelter for the city’s unhoused population, though officials warn the facility may not open until mid-December or later as staff hiring and training are finalized.

The move follows a series of setbacks that left the city scrambling for a solution just weeks before the original opening date. As reported by the Press Herald, a plan to utilize the basement of Preble Street’s Elena’s Way shelter in the Bayside neighborhood fell through due to zoning restrictions and community resistance. According to nwvcil.org, the nonprofit Seeds of Hope had withdrawn its application for MaineHousing funding and expressed no further interest in operating the shelter in Portland, leaving the council to return to the Riverside site used during the previous winter.

The decision was not without significant friction in the council chambers. Advocates and community members expressed frustration over the timing and the choice of funding. The debate centered on two primary paths: expanding capacity at the existing city-run Homeless Services Center on Riverside Street or opening the industrial park site. While staff memos suggested that expanding the existing center would be cheaper and faster, councilors ultimately rejected that option to avoid excluding vulnerable individuals.

Specifically, 52 people currently hold criminal trespass orders that prevent them from entering the Homeless Services Center. City staff noted that while the housing status of these individuals is unknown, the majority of those orders were issued following violent behavior that posed a threat to staff or other guests. The industrial park option provides a “no-barrier” alternative that would not turn these individuals away.

The debate over opioid settlement funds

A central point of contention involves the source of the money. The city is proposing to use $735,000 from the local share of national opioid settlement funds—money intended for manufacturers and distributors to address the addiction crisis—to cover operating costs. This brings the total estimated cost for the Riverside proposal to approximately $1.2 million, according to nwvcil.org, which is roughly $500,000 more than the initial downtown plan.

Critics argue the funds are being misapplied. During the meeting, Ryan Paige, a co-founder of a Maine recovery nonprofit, stated that the money is meant to help people “out of the grips of addiction” and called the use of these funds for a short-term shelter “egregious.” This sentiment was echoed by Councilor Wes Pelletier, who noted that while he supported the Homeless Services Center expansion, he felt his trust in staff had been “deeply shaken” by the recent planning failures.

The city has not yet provided a public explanation for how a general winter warming shelter meets the specific legal terms of the opioid settlement, which typically requires housing-related services to be tied to treatment and recovery. The funds will be used alongside approximately $300,000 provided by MaineHousing.

The financial breakdown of the current plan is as follows:

Funding Source	Amount	Purpose
Opioid Settlement Funds	$735,000	Shelter operations
MaineHousing	~$300,000	Shelter operations
Total Estimated Cost	~$1.2 Million	Riverside site operations

Operational hurdles and community impact

Even with the funding approved, the timeline remains a major concern. Because the city must hire and train new staff, the shelter may not be operational until late December. This delay is particularly sensitive given that last year’s shelter at the same Riverside location was criticized for closing during a February blizzard due to staffing shortages—an event that, according to nwvcil.org, prevented Maine Medical Center from discharging unhoused patients during a storm.

Portland City Council postpones warming shelter funding decision

The location itself presents logistical challenges. Terence Miller, the advocacy director for Preble Street, noted that an “off-peninsula” location creates significant barriers for guests. He recommended that the city implement an extended shuttle schedule to help residents move between the shelter and the peninsula.

Portland maine opioid settlement warming shelter — Photo: nwvcil.org

The council’s decision also highlighted a growing rift between municipal departments. Councilor Anna Bullett, chair of the public safety and health and human services committee, criticized the lack of involvement from the Cumberland County government during recent planning meetings. Similarly, Councilor Regina Phillips expressed frustration with the lack of regional cooperation, stating, “The minute you mention the county they crawl under a rock.”

“We’re here because the old model has failed,” said Councilor Ben Grant, referring to the city’s long-standing attempts to rely on community organizations to manage warming shelters.

As the winter season nears, the city faces the dual challenge of managing a high-cost, late-opening facility while answering questions about the long-term sustainability of using settlement funds for emergency shelter. For now, the focus remains on the immediate goal: getting the doors open at 166 Riverside Industrial Parkway before the temperatures drop further.