Multnomah County proposes new sobering center

At this point, many of us have probably encountered someone in the midst of a drug, alcohol or mental health-related crisis in a public place. And you may have wondered: What can I do for that person? Where could that person go so as not to be disrupting public space? In Multnomah County for the last four years, the answer has been: nowhere. Central City Concern’s Sobering Station closed abruptly in December 2019, and a lengthy effort to reopen a new center fell apart two years later. Now, Multnomah County Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards has led an effort to propose a new center which is backed by state funding. Brim-Edwards joins us to explain the final proposal.