Published on December 26, 2022
City Council has approved an ordinance authorizing the purchase of the Redwood Inn from local homeless service provider, Rogue Retreat.
“This property will complement the Urban Campground and Navigation Center, which the City already owns to expand a portfolio of publicly owned resources providing a path from homelessness to housing,” said Deputy City Manager, Kelly Madding.
In taking over the Redwood Inn, the City will assume responsibility for securing the funding needed to complete the renovation now projected to cost $900,000 - $1,400,000 depending on adjustments to the scope of work. Oregon Housing and Community Services has allocated $450,000 for the Redwood Inn that can be used for either renovation or operations.
Rogue Retreat began working on the Medford Project Turnkey facility in 2021 to transform the existing motel into emergency housing for Almeda Fire victims and houseless individuals. As of March 2022, renovation efforts were suspended due to lack of funding and project management capacity.
Both Rogue Retreat and City staff explored strategies for restarting the project to deliver the anticipated housing resources to serve critical community needs. The parties concluded that at this time Rogue Retreat lacks the financial resources and organizational capacity to complete the renovation of the property and that the City is better qualified to assume responsibility for the completion of the renovation.
Placing the property in City ownership strengthens its oversight of future operations and ensures greater stability and sustainability of the resource.