Oregon residents flee Portland area as fentanyl overdoses, crime, housing costs increase
“If you're a drug addict on the streets of Portland, and you get free food, free housing, free water, free needles, and have $2 fentanyl, why would you put yourself into treatment if you don't have to go?”
Ari Hoffman
Seattle WA
May 26, 2023
For the first time in over a decade, Oregon’s Multnomah County, which includes Portland, saw its population decrease in 2021, according to numbers released by the US Census Bureau.
12,494 people, or 1.5 percent of the population fled the liberal county. The Portland Metro area itself saw a more modest decline of 0.2 percent after growing for 30 years straight.
The population loss was comparatively less than in other urban areas, as residents and businesses flee the Democratic strongholds due to rising crime and increasing costs of living. Comparatively, San Francisco lost 6.3 percent of its residents in one year.
According to the data, US cities with high housing costs saw people fleeing for more affordable, midsized cities. As residents left the Bay Area and Los Angeles, cities such as St. George, Utah, and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, saw the most percentage increases.
https://thepostmillennial.com/oregon-residents-flee-portland-area-as-fentanyl-overdoses-crime-housing-costs-increase?utm_campaign=64487
