At last night’s Grants Pass City forum, if my understanding is correct, Jeromy from U-Turn for Christ announced they have secured the lease for the Vine Street property. This comes despite significant community concerns regarding the project’s size, scope, and location.
The 7.8-acre property is large enough to potentially house a “homeless industrial complex” for years, accommodating an estimated 500-600 people. The community has repeatedly expressed concerns about the proximity of schools and senior citizen centers to the proposed development. The speaker immediately following Jeromy underscored the serious nature of these community concerns regarding the Vine Street project.
Additionally, if I heard correctly in the below video, Jeromy is seeking city funds to cover the necessary infrastructure development for the Vine Street property, a project that would place a substantial burden on taxpayers.
Am I missing something here? Shouldn’t Jeromy have prioritized listening to and respecting the community’s wishes before securing a property that has generated such widespread opposition?
City of Grants Pass Homeless Solutions Grant Program Session June 9, 2025
https://www.youtube.com/live/I0C5V73khZA?feature=shared&t=3322
City Councilor Rob Pell understands the problems with the size and grasps what needs to be addressed:
https://www.youtube.com/live/I0C5V73khZA?feature=shared&t=5520
Thank you, Bill, for providing these links. My question is WHO decided that 150 ‘resting’ spaces was the minimum requirement? Was it because the previous administrative council opened the J-street area that could hold 150?
Also, Jeromy noted that the homeless population in GP is growing, and needs to be considered. That concerns me. I thought Jeromy had some good suggestions, but now I believe he actually WANTS Grants Pass to be the central go-to location for homeless vagrants. I believe his intentions were pure in the beginning, but now I think the attention is starting to corrupt him.
Thank Anna: The 150 person number stems from the current injunction. The judge that ruled on our current injunction stated we had 150 and we need a 150 person ADA compliant site(s). Agree with your assessment of what is happening. I think the general concept of what Jeromy is trying to do is good an is worth pursing – BUT there is real issues regarding the “size” and the “location”.
These issues are not being addressed nor are the people in the higher up’s listening to the community. It has become more of a, plow through it – ram it through and hope for the best. Jeromy also stated in the forum he is expecting city funds (can we say taxpayer money) to deal with the infrastructure issues, which most likely will run into the millions.
My question to those who support this project are:
Why is a property being considered that is 4 times the size it needs to be, which guarantees future expansion?
Why is property being considered that is going to require most likely millions of taxpayer money for infrastructure?
These questions keep going unanswered with at least common sense answers. This shows us poor planning, rushed planning and poor direction by the city council and Jeromy. It is another disaster in the making.