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PORTLAND, Maine -Protesters in Portland were demonstrating Tuesday at City Hall, demanding the city reconsider a plan to cut resources to homeless shelters. Protesters were chanting and sharing their experiences. Beginning July 1, city officials are planning to cut overflow space and stop placing homeless families in area motels when the shelters are full. A

PORTLAND, Maine – A public hearing is underway at City Hall in Portland to discuss plans to cut back shelter services for the homeless. In advance of the hearing, homeless advocates took to the street outside to highlight their opposition to the proposal. Seventy-five thin foam mats were laid on the ground outside city hall

… "We know that you are not the bad guys here," Mark Swann, the executive director of Preble Street, told the councilors. "But this plan to close the overflow shelter is a really bad idea. As it stands now, as of July 1, there will be no safe place for 100 people, including children, to

Homeless advocates plan to lay out 75 thin foam mats in City Hall Plaza on Tuesday to call attention to the loss of overflow shelter space. Homeless Voices for Justice, an advocacy group composed of people who have experienced homelessness, is protesting a plan to close one of the city’s emergency shelters on July 1

There’s opposition to a plan by Portland city councilors to close the city’s overflow shelter for the homeless. Mark Swann, executive director of Preble Street, is a leader of the effort. "We think the city has made a bad decision," Swann said, "and they’ve made it prematurely without all the facts and they’ve made it

In response to the City of Portland’s decision to trim shelter services for the homeless, the advocacy group, Homeless Voices for Justice (HVJ), is inviting members of the community to join them in protest on the steps of Portland City Hall. The demonstration will begin at 4:30 pm on Tuesday afternoon, prior to the 5:30

In an April 24 article ("Portland city councilors want to protect funding for dental clinic"), Portland City Councilor Jon Hinck was quoted: "If we have to choose between programs that go to homeless adults and child dental care, we’ve got to save the child dental care." We find this comment to be not only alarming,

… A recent Portland Press Herald article about a hearing in Augusta on proposed public assistance reforms included the thoughts of Antonie Bikamba, who fled political persecution and torture in Rwanda. After a period on General Assistance, while awaiting a work permit, he earned a master’s degree and currently is a caseworker at Preble Street.

… Because of high demand for emergency shelter beds, much of it driven by out-of-town users, the city has been paying for an overflow shelter at the Preble Street Resource Center. When the overflow is full, people are sent to a warming center at the city’s General Assistance office, where they can sit in chairs