On Tuesday, July 23, Portland city councilors argued over Mayor Ethan Strimling's messaging related to housing placements for asylum seekers.

PORTLAND, Maine — As the August 15 deadline to move asylum seekers out of the Expo draws nearer, city staff find themselves at a crossroads. Asylum-seeking families are declining housing opportunities that the city has arranged for them, and the options are limited.

Portland City Council held a workshop Tuesday to give city staff guidance in relation to asylum-seekers and next steps.

Staff members expressed concern over the lack of interest from newcomer families in housing opportunities outside of Portland.

"Now we're trying to ramp up and get people housed, and I would say it's really frustrating and upsetting for staff to work this hard to house these families to have them turn down over and over and over again," said Kristen Dow, the director of Portland's Health and Human Services division.

Some councilors say that Mayor Ethan Strimling contributed to the confusion over housing placements for newcomer families.

"One of the sources of confusion has been our own mayor, and I want to make sure we address that. That's why this meeting was called tonight, because we have a member of this body that has been spreading misinformation about the city policy that's not true and (is) putting people at peril of becoming homeless," said Councilor Belinda Ray.

Councilor Spencer Thibodeau referred to an email chain from July 16, in which a staff member recounts a visit to the emergency shelter at the Portland Expo by Mayor Ethan Strimling and city councilor Pious Ali.

"It's an email that we all received, in which you were alleged to have told residents, people who were staying at the shelter, that they did not have to accept the housing that was being found by staff," Thibodeau said.

Mayor Strimling responded, saying that his messaging has been consistent with city policy.



"Of course, in the United States of America if you don't want to live somewhere, you aren't forced to live there. But if you make a decision not to live somewhere, there will be repercussions for that. And, in fact, the email says that. These families are in desperate need of help, and I am doing everything I can to help them, and they know it. And the community does too," Strimling said.

The meeting was over two hours long, and the infighting took up just a few minutes of that time.

Councilors spent the rest of the meeting discussing the agenda items, which were: updated General Assistance policies, policies for family placement from the shelter, and options with regard to the Expo.

Last Thursday, Gov. Janet Mills made an emergency change to the General Assistance law, allowing asylum-seekers to apply and benefit from those funds.

The city says they are moving forward with the applications for general assistance and have started to submit reimbursements to the state.

The city says the hard deadline to move families out of the expo is August 15.

The city has to abide by contracts made by other entities that will take over that space for regular use after that date.

That means that if people are not in housing by the 15, then they will be staying at the city shelters overnight or living on the streets.

City councilors gave guidance to staff Tuesday night to go by the rules they use for anyone staying in a Portland city shelter.

Those rules are as follows: if someone is offered housing placement from the city, which has been extensively vetted by city staff, and that person turns it down, they then must leave the shelter by the next day.