A new supportive rehousing project located in the renovated Old Mill and Suites on 3rd Street in Bend will begin taking in previously unhoused residents on Oct. 1. The long-awaited project will create 76 new housing units and offer longer-term stays and supportive services for individuals placed in the units.
The Old Mill and Suites will house unsheltered people with a priority in placing those who are medically vulnerable, LGBTQ+ youth, and the BIPOC community. According to a press release, the project received original funding from Governor Kotek’s executive order and
HB 5019, to address the state’s housing and homelessness crisis.
Individuals will be placed in the housing project through the region’s
Coordinated Entry System, a list that helps connect houseless individual to resources or housing that best matches their needs. Individuals are entered into the CES after completing an assessment and working with a service provider in the region.
This project was a community partnership between the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council, the Multi-Agency Coordinating Group, the City of Bend, Fortify Holdings and R&H Construction.
In February 2021, the City of Bend
sought to acquire the Old Mill and Suites with funding made available through Project Turnkey, a state program that funded the purchase and renovation of motels into shelters to help address houselessness. However, after conducting a feasibility study showing that the building was unsuitable for the project, the City abandoned its plans and instead
purchased the Bend Value Inn, which is now the 28-unit Stepping Stone Shelter.
In October 2021, Fortify, a Portland-based company specializing in converting hotels and motels into apartments,
purchased the Old Mill and Suites for $4.5 million, to help transform the units into livable apartments through community partnerships.
According to COIC Executive Director Tammy Baney, the facility needed a complete renovation, which took some time. “We could have opened in June, but for safety reasons of an active construction site, we as a community determined it would be best to go ahead and open when its fully completed,” Baney said at an
Aug. 15 Coordinated Houseless Response Office meeting.