Mayor-elect Keith Wilson promised to end unsheltered homelessness. He's already helped kick-start plans for hundreds of winter shelter beds before taking office. by Courtney Vaughn Portland’s next mayor hasn’t taken office yet, but he’s already working to open hundreds of winter shelter beds.  Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson, and Mayor-elect Keith Wilson announced Thursday that the city and county are jointly opening at least 200 new winter emergency shelter beds “to provide urgent relief to unsheltered Portlanders as the weather gets colder and wetter.” Wilson, who founded the nonprofit Shelter Portland, made shelters the hallmark of his campaign, committing to end unsheltered homelessness in Portland within a year of taking office. While on the campaign trail, he called for the region to rapidly establish more overnight shelters.  Wilson has faced skepticism of his ambitious timeline and ability to secure adequate funding. Wheeler had similar goals before leaving office, but after eight years, homelessness increased. City and county staff told the Mercury that the effort to open 200 more overnight shelter beds was largely driven by Wilson, with strong support from Vega Pederson. It’s an appeal that made sense, given the county's penchant for freezing winter temperatures and the sheer number of people living unsheltered in the region. Just two weeks ago, when the overnight temperatures dropped to the mid-30s, neither the county nor the city had severe weather emergency shelter beds available.  Multnomah County’s threshold for temporarily opening severe weather shelters is high. Unless temps are sub-freezing (25 degrees or lower), or the forecast calls for freezing rain, or snow, it’s unlikely the county will announce emergency warming centers.  Sitting next to outgoing Mayor Ted Wheeler during a December 5 media briefing, Wilson acknowledged the challenges of rapidly opening more shelter beds, given the current protocols. Still, he left little room for compromise. “We need to get going right now, and we’re in ongoing conversations with the county right now,” Wilson said, noting the city was “moving forward quickly” to open severe winter shelters. “We are not going to allow Portlanders to not have that resource, that security and safety of shelter and sleep in their time of need.” Service providers and homelessness response workers say the region’s shelters are often full. Some, like the more permanent units at Safe Rest Villages and the Temporary Alternative Shelter Sites (TASS) have long waitlists, or require referral from specific outreach workers. Wilson recounts a recent tour to a shelter near I-205 and Powell Boulevard. “It was raining out. It felt like 20 degrees,” Wilson said. “Of the 45 beds that we had available, we had 55 people lining up, and we had to ask 10 to go away. Left them with blankets. The crisis is here. The resources are ready. We need to execute on that.” This isn't the first time Multnomah County has opened winter shelter beds, but it's easily the largest number they've committed to adding. Last year, the Joint Office of Homeless Services partnered with Sunstone Way (formerly All Good Northwest) to put a short-term temporary overnight winter shelter at Portsmouth Union Church in North Portland. That site had a 50-person capacity and stayed open from January to early spring. Other seasonal winter shelter beds have been converted to permanent sites, adding to the number of year-round beds.  The latest initiative comes amid a larger effort from the county, city of Portland, and city of Gresham to create 1,000 more shelter units before 2026.  Data from the county shows a roughly 90 percent average daily shelter utilization rate across most of the region's shelters (including youth and family shelter units). In colder months, like January, that number jumps to 94 percent average utilization. Thursday’s announcement of 200 additional winter beds suggests improved collaboration between the city of Portland and the county to address homelessness.  The government agencies each kicked in $375,000 toward the $750,000 winter shelter effort. “These overnight beds, put in place in addition to severe weather shelter beds, are an important step in providing the respite people need and are part of the overall work we’re doing as part of the Homeless Response System to shelter and house people and prevent homelessness from occurring in the first place,” Vega Pederson stated in a news release announcing the new shelters. Adding hundreds more units is sorely needed, government leaders say, but it won’t be enough to accommodate the estimated 6,300 people in Portland who need shelter. Currently, between the city and county’s projects, the region has nearly 3,000 shelter beds, including those for families and youth. County and city leaders haven't released an opening date for the new shelter beds, or disclosed the locations and hours. More information is expected in the coming weeks.