Pod Housing: 60-unit shelter opens in Aloha with $3.7M public funding

A new temporary housing community dedicated on Tuesday, October 27, is scheduled to open its doors by the end of the year. The facility, known as Next Step Community, is located off Southwest 209th Street in Aloha and features 60 individual pods. Washington County Department of Housing Services Assistant Director Jes Larson stated the site will accommodate up to 70 people experiencing homelessness. The nonprofit Open Door HousingWorks will operate the village.

The development costs $3.7 million in total. Metro’s Supportive Housing Services measure funded the full cost of the development. Oregon Housing and Community Services contributes $1.5 million annually to the operating budget. The Washington County Department of Housing Services purchased the property in 2025, and the Housing Authority of Washington County owns the site. The pods provide meals, bathrooms, showers, linens, and laundry services. Each unit includes individual heating and air conditioning.

Evan Nehring, a former resident of the Beaverton shelter, addressed the crowd at the dedication ceremony. He was released from prison in December 2024 with $1,000 saved and no place to go. He avoided returning to the streets by securing a bed at the Beaverton shelter through Washington County’s Community Connect program in early January 2025. By June 2025, six months after his release, he moved into his own apartment. Nehring now serves on the Washington County Lived Experience Advisory Committee, a group of individuals with personal experience of homelessness.

Nehring described the staff at his previous shelter as friendly and the site as clean. He noted that having a private space with individual climate control makes a person feel more secure. He called the ability to control his own environment "wonderful." The new site manager, Tonya Lamar, said she is nervous and excited about the opening. She noted that convincing people to enter a shelter after living outside is difficult because many fear change. Her goal is for residents to engage in work toward housing goals.

Nafisa Fai, Washington County District 1 Commissioner, represented Aloha, Beaverton, Cooper Mountain, Garden Home, and the Whitford area at the event. She cited a 2025 point-in-time count that found 800 people experiencing homelessness in Washington County. She stated that number does not capture everyone. Fai noted that in 2021, the county had no year-round adult shelter beds. Today, there are more than 400. Last year, more than 700 people moved from shelter directly into housing. According to Fai, 97% of housing voucher holders remained safely housed after one year.

Jeremy Toevs, executive director of Open Door HousingWorks, thanked those present for their support. He described the space as "truly amazing." Toevs said the opening is about creating opportunities and restoring hope. He stated that opening a shelter like this saves lives. The facility will provide around-the-clock professionals trained to help residents find stability.

Gerritt Rosenthal, a Metro councilor for District 3, said 5,000 people in the tricounty area have recently been brought off the streets. He noted that about 16,000 people have been either kept from becoming homeless or taken off the streets since the measure was passed. Rosenthal described the process as a big learning curve with many complexities. Metro officials say the Supportive Housing Services measure, passed by voters in 2020, has moved more than 16,000 people from homelessness to housing. It has also provided eviction prevention to more than 20,000 households.

Liz Weber, director of Housing Stability at the Oregon Housing & Community Services Department, expressed delight at the upcoming opening. She said the place will provide safety, stability, and hope for people experiencing homelessness in Washington County. The county’s advisory committee includes individuals who have personally experienced homelessness to guide the program. The new site will join other pod villages in the region operated by Open Door HousingWorks.