Portland officials haven't conducted due diligence on a high-wire proposal to open a massive temporary homeless shelter in a city warehouse because, so far, they've received nothing in writing from developer Homer Williams, the project's architect.

That lack of specificity isn't stopping the City Council from pushing forward, however.

On Wednesday, a divided City Council is expected to take the first step toward greenlighting the Northwest Portland shelter by securing land that could cost $120,000 to nearly $1.2 million a year to lease.

Officials say that'll be taxpayers' only direct expense for now.

That's because Williams, the get-it-done visionary who helped transform the Pearl and South Waterfront districts, has promised to raise private money to pay for shelter operations, staffing and upgrades. But that assurance comes even though city officials don't know how much the project might ultimately cost or where that funding will come from - or whether the burden could fall on the city if Williams' shelter opens but money dries up.

Portland Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who oversees city housing programs and is championing the shelter concept, said Williams hasn't documented details in writing. City officials will eventually vet financial information, he said, but only after the City Council approves leasing the waterfront warehouse, currently owned by Portland's sewer bureau.

"We're trying to be as receptive as possible," said Saltzman, acknowledging that he's giving Williams the benefit of the doubt. "There's plenty of opportunity for us to get things in writing."

The temporary shelter could open in October and provide overnight sleeping for up to 400 people. It would be operated by the Union Gospel Mission with help from Ibrahim Mubarak, co-founder of homeless camps Right 2 Dream Too and Dignity Village. The lease would run six months but could be extended to 18 months.

If successful, the shelter would be a first step toward Williams' broader vision: a permanent shelter and homeless campus with dormitory-style housing and services dubbed "Oregon Trail of Hope." Cost estimates range from $60 million to beyond $100 million.

But, like the temporary shelter, no one has scrutinized those numbers or considered whether a similarly focused facility could be built more cheaply elsewhere - such as Multnomah County's unused 525-bed Wapato jail. It's not clear how the larger project would be financed, either, with Williams now making overtures to the Oregon Legislature for construction cash.

The proposal has also kindled controversy beyond money.

Environmentalists and business leaders oppose the plan because converting a 14-acre warehouse property to a permanent shelter would reduce scarce industrial acreage.

Others object to the sheer volume of the proposal - it would become Portland's largest shelter, representing the literal warehousing of homeless residents. The property also hasn't been environmentally cleared for a shelter. And there's concern that leasing the property for anything less than market value would represent an inappropriate subsidy funded by sewer customers whose bills have increased year after year.

Commissioner Nick Fish, a former housing commissioner, is perhaps the shelter's most vocal critic.

"I don't remember the last time we took on something of this magnitude without any due diligence, without any roadmap, without any criteria, without any competition," said Fish, who oversees the city's sewer bureau.

"At the end of the day," Fish added, "people are saying: 'Homer has an idea and in the next two years he may be able to back it up.' That's how we make policy around here?"

Warehouse as big as a Home Depot

Williams and Saltzman are targeting a warehouse just north of the Pearl District's newest apartments for their temporary homeless shelter.

Located at 2400 NW Front Ave., the property had been part of the Port of Portland's Terminal 1 until 2004. That's when Portland's Bureau of Environmental Services bought it for $6.3 million, allowing assembly crews to help build the city's $1.4 billion Big Pipe project to reduce sewage spills into the Willamette River.

The waterfront property provides splendid views of the downtown skyline, the Fremont Bridge and even Mt. Hood. And since 2014, city officials have been planning to sell the surplus property and return profits back into the sewer system.

But Williams and Saltzman now believe the on-site warehouse could be converted into a hangar for the homeless. At 96,000 square feet, it's about the size of a typical Home Depot - but it lacks drinking water, a sewer connection, insulation and a heating and cooling system.

"A lot of things need to get done and paid for," Williams said. "You've just got to chip away at it. We've made a lot of good progress."

Williams said he's working on a long list of potential improvements: insulation, gas heaters, water access and combination bathroom/showers to be rolled on site via 18 wheelers. Williams said he's also lining up security, a medical group to provide on-site services, a group to operate a kennel and a company to donate lockers.

Williams declined to identify costs for necessary improvements but said he expects business leaders will contribute resources.

"We'll get it built out for no cost," he said. "This is not a big cost."

As for operations, Williams said he's working with Union Gospel Mission and the co-founder of two prominent outdoor campsites.

Williams declined to say how much it'll cost to operate. But an unrelated estimate by Multnomah County pegged shelter costs at about $700,000 a year for 100 beds, or about $2.8 million for 400 beds.

Williams said it would cost far less, and he's not asking the city or county for money.

"We're still refining those and I don't want to throw out numbers until we get everything in, frankly," he said. "We've got foundations that are going to be willing to step up."

Bill Russell, executive director of the Union Gospel Mission, said operation costs could run about $1.4 million a year at full capacity. Russell acknowledged some trepidation about operating a shelter that would be more than four times larger any other run by his organization.

"I am absolutely concerned about volume and safety," said Russell, who plans to visit the San Antonio, Texas, facility, Haven for Hope, that Williams' vision is based on.

The city's only upfront contribution would be providing the property, which Saltzman wants to lease from Fish's sewer bureau for $120,000 a year, about one-tenth what an outside broker said is fair market value.

Mayor Charlie Hales and Commissioner Steve Novick are poised to support Saltzman's plan. But Fish has pushed back and is trying to secure more rental income for his bureau. Meanwhile, attorney John DiLorenzo, who has successfully sued the city for misspending water and sewer money, warned officials to tread carefully.

If the City Council approves lease terms at a cut-rate, "then they're cheating the ratepayers and I think they'd be in violation" of past judicial rulings, DiLorenzo said.

Despite the challenges, Saltzman said Williams deserves the opportunity to deliver. If the temporary facility proves successful, he said, then perhaps it could be funded after 18 months through the city and Multnomah County's newly created Joint Office for Homeless Services.

"We're providing them with an avenue to deliver," Saltzman said. "And if they can't deliver, we're in it for six months. If they can, then we keep the success going ... and then maybe the larger vision ... becomes a reality."

What about Wapato?

Costs for that larger vision have morphed since June. Williams said he still envisions a major campus serving more than 1,000 people, but at a much lower price.

"We're not going to spend anywhere near $100 million," he said. "I think we can build it for $60 million."

Williams said he wants more than half to come from the private sector. But Williams said he's also begun conversations with unidentified lawmakers about capital funding.

"If the private side does this, what are you willing to do?" he said of his conversations. "And it was meaningful."

But discussion of Williams' proposed $60 million permanent facility isn't being accompanied by studies of other options, such as Wapato jail in North Portland.

A county analysis in January found the jail could be opened as a temporary shelter for an estimated $953,500, although officials stress that's the bare minimum, and doesn't include the $5 million needed to bring it up to jail standards. Monthly costs for a temporary shelter would run the county an estimated $136,200, not including contract fees with a shelter operator.

Any permanent changes could cost substantially more - but it's not known how much or how that would compare to Williams' long-term proposal.

Multnomah County Chairwoman Deborah Kafoury said she understands the desire to consider Wapato but believes it's not practical.

Officials are now considering selling the property, with a June appraisal suggesting it's worth $8 million for industrial uses or $20 million as a jail. Kafoury said Multnomah County never should have built it but using it as a homeless shelter now isn't the solution.

"I'm not willing to throw good money after bad," she said.

Williams, however, said it would be cheaper to renovate the jail than build at the city's warehouse site. But he agreed with Kafoury that the jail - 12 to 14 miles from downtown - is too distant to be ideal.

Either way, Williams said he'll soon have financial plans for public vetting.

First he'll offer up concrete details on the temporary shelter, to be followed with a design, project budget, operating budget and funding plan for the permanent facility.

"It's like the role of a developer. I'm not an architect. I'm not an engineer," Williams said. "We do know how to organize and get things built."

-- Brad Schmidt

503-294-7628

@cityhallwatch