North Portland's homelessness problem is driving residents to flee the city, according to reports.
Real estate broker Lauren Iaquinta packs up and heads to the suburbs to her KGW8 homeless camp at nearby Peninsula Crossing. He said the population is increasing. trail.
"When you're driving through North Portland and you're in this nice area with no problems, you can turn around the corner. There are homeless camps in the area," she said. "It's kind of sad. I've been doing this for 10 years here in Portland, and it's changed a lot." She cited no data on people moving for homeless encampments.
" Most people don't want to worry about whether they can leave their car parked in the driveway overnight," she said. "It's a pretty touchy subject." The office says there are 6,000 homeless people in the Portland area, but many believe the real number is much higher.
Resident Greg Dirks, who lives near theencampment on the Peninsula Crossing Trail, said that when he saw homeless people near his home, he said, ``I live here. It doesn't feel so good to be there," he said.
"It makes life in the neighborhood more difficult and not as friendly as possible," he told KGW8, noting that the encampment was ruining the area.
Another resident, Mark Smith, shared a backyard with the camp and was afraid to walk alone or tend to the garden.
"Every day you go from one end of the street to the other, you are facing a very difficult situation. People are in a really dire situation," he said.
But a homeless neighbor told Location Station that residents' fears were exaggerated.
said TT Sanchez, who lives on the trail. rice field.
``What shouldn't they scare us for because we live outside? It's the only reason to scare us.Even if we lived in four walls and a house or something, would that scare us?" Sanchez continued.
