HHS and Public Safety Committee — Portland, ME
Date: 2025-05-13
Time: 17:30

Remote HHS and Public Safety MEMBERS
Meeting Agenda Councilor Anna Bullett, District 4, Chair
 Councilor April Fournier, At-Large
May 13, 2025 at 5:30 PM
 Councilor Sarah Michniewicz, District 1
Remote Meeting Councilor Wesley Pelletier, District 2



To submit written public comment on an agenda item, email HHSPS@portlandmaine.gov. Submissions must be
received by 12:00 pm the day before the Health & Human Services and Public Safety meeting to guarantee their
inclusion in the agenda packet. All submissions must include the commenter's name and legal address. To help
ensure your comment is submitted for the correct item, please include the name of the agenda item (see below).

The Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committee will conduct this meeting remotely via Zoom
pursuant to the Remote Meeting Policy adopted by the Portland City Council. Allow your computer to install
the free Zoom app to get the best meeting experience. If you are not able to attend live either in person or via
Zoom, a recording will be available in the Agenda Center following the meeting.

You are invited to a Zoom webinar!
When: May 13, 2025 05:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Remote HHS and Public Safety Meeting

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1. Announcements


2. Review and Approval of Minutes from April 10, 2025


 a. Draft Minutes
3. 'Built for Zero' Panel Discussion (Councilor Sarah Michniewicz)


 a. Panelists (10 minutes each):

 • Amy Holland, Statewide Homeless Response System Coordinator
 • Nakesha Warren, Homeless Response Hub 2 Coordinator



4. Public Safety Update (Mark Dubois, Police Chief)


5. Childcare Concept Proposal (Dena Libner, Assistant City Manager)
 Staff will present a childcare concept to the Committee for general discussion and
 feedback.
 a. Concept Proposal
6. Next Meeting: June 10, 2025

Remote HHS and Public Safety MEMBERS
Meeting Agenda Councilor Anna Bullett, District 4, Chair
 Councilor April Fournier, At-Large
May 13, 2025 at 5:30 PM
 Councilor Sarah Michniewicz, District 1
Remote Meeting Councilor Wesley Pelletier, District 2



To submit written public comment on an agenda item, email HHSPS@portlandmaine.gov. Submissions must be
received by 12:00 pm the day before the Health & Human Services and Public Safety meeting to guarantee their
inclusion in the agenda packet. All submissions must include the commenter's name and legal address. To help
ensure your comment is submitted for the correct item, please include the name of the agenda item (see below).

The Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committee will conduct this meeting remotely via Zoom
pursuant to the Remote Meeting Policy adopted by the Portland City Council. Allow your computer to install
the free Zoom app to get the best meeting experience. If you are not able to attend live either in person or via
Zoom, a recording will be available in the Agenda Center following the meeting.

You are invited to a Zoom webinar!
When: May 13, 2025 05:30 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Remote HHS and Public Safety Meeting

Join from PC, Mac, iPad, or Android:
https://portlandmaine-gov.zoom.us/j/87411054898?pwd=eWdzajAnQOF1kuOecBq3XVJRh2EDQ8.1
Passcode:056521

Phone one-tap:
+13092053325,,87411054898#,,,,*056521# US
+13126266799,,87411054898#,,,,*056521# US (Chicago)

Join via audio:
+1 309 205 3325 US
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 646 931 3860 US
+1 929 205 6099 US (New York)
+1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC)
+1 305 224 1968 US
+1 689 278 1000 US
+1 719 359 4580 US
+1 253 205 0468 US
+1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
+1 360 209 5623 US
+1 386 347 5053 US
+1 507 473 4847 US
+1 564 217 2000 US
+1 669 444 9171 US
+1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose)
Webinar ID: 874 1105 4898

 Page 1
Passcode: 056521
International numbers available: https://portlandmaine-gov.zoom.us/u/kbhDD8qUT




1. Announcements


2. Review and Approval of Minutes from April 10, 2025


 a. Draft Minutes
3. 'Built for Zero' Panel Discussion (Councilor Sarah Michniewicz)


 a. Panelists (10 minutes each):

 • Amy Holland, Statewide Homeless Response System Coordinator
 • Nakesha Warren, Homeless Response Hub 2 Coordinator



4. Public Safety Update (Mark Dubois, Police Chief)


5. Childcare Concept Proposal (Dena Libner, Assistant City Manager)
 Staff will present a childcare concept to the Committee for general discussion and
 feedback.
 a. Concept Proposal
6. Next Meeting: June 10, 2025




 Page 2
 Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committee

 April 10, 2025, 5:30 PM Remote Meeting

Committee Attendance:
Anna Bullett, Chair (District 4), April Fournier (At-large), Sarah Michniewicz (District 1),
Wesley Pelletier (District 2).


Councilor Attendance:


City Staff:
Adam Harr, Executive Assistant; Mark Dubois, Police Chief; Dena Libner, Assistant City
Manager; Greg Jordan, Assistant City Manager; Maggie Mcloughlin, Director of Health and
Human Services; Bridget Rauscher, Public Health Director. Kaela Gonzalez, American Rescue
Plan Coordinator; Jessica Hanscombe, Director of Permitting and Inspections; Chris Beaumont,
Marijuana Compliance Coordinator, Mary Davis, HCD Division Director; Caity Hager,
Emergency Management Coordinator; Nicole Albert; Associate Corporation Counsel; Chad
Johnston, Fire Chief.

1. Announcements
 • None.
2. Review and Approval of Minutes from March 11, 2025
 • Moved to approve by Councilor Fournier and seconded by Councilor Michniewicz. The
 minutes were approved unanimously 4-0.
3. Chapter 35 (Councilor April Fournier)
 • Higher Grounds of Maine is a cannabis store that also operates as a coffee shop; there was an
 issue with their license as there was not an ability to also make espresso and coffee drinks the
 way the ordinance is currently written.
 o Requested staff to look at current licensing and what changes could be proposed to allow
 this use.
 o Chapter 35 and chapter 15 needed changes.
 • Public Comment
 o Mark Barnett, owner of Higher Grounds of Maine at 45 Wharf Street. He thanked the
 committee and staff before giving background: Received initial food service license in
 2017 as a coffee shop with a food safety license held since 2027. They prepared coffees
 and blended drinks. The state license is an FSE food service with prep which allows
 them to blend milk. This was so for 7 years until their food service with no prep license
 with the city expired. Food service establishment that also has cannabis on hand and
 dairy cross contamination was the concern; for 3.5 of their 7 years in operation they
 operated the cannabis part of their business. When they switched to adult use, the
 question of if they can operate a beverage prep business onsite with the cannabis




 Page 3
 business came up. Now we are looking at how to get to a license that allows to prepare
 the beverages; they are currently not serving the beverages which has cost money in
 legal fees and loss of customers.
 o Public comment closed at 5:44 PM.
 • Committee discussion
 o Page 27 has the major changes with the red lines: Section D
 o Adding change to FSA with preparation, striking out hot beverages and limiting to non-
 alcoholic beverages.
 o Change in fee from $142 to $230.
 o There was a cap on businesses in 2020 and then the cap was removed and the workload
 increased.
 ▪ Was there any consideration on additional budget requests because of that
 increase?
 • Not this year but we will put in for an additional employee when social
 clubs come up.
 • We thought we would have 20 stores and there are 38; we are right on
 the line of needing more staff.
 o Adult retail stores are 21+ (medical is 18+) and people under 21 can go into stores
 accompanied by a parent or =guardian and could purchase a coffee, but not cannabis.
 o Would other stores likely follow?
 ▪ Likely yes.
 • Committee Vote
 o Councilor Fournier Moved to approve the changes in Chapter 35, Councilor
 Michniewicz seconded and the motion was approved 4-0.

4. Childcare Proposal (Councilor Anna Bullett, Chair)
 • The proposal comes from a committee request form the March meeting.
 • The CDBG program has been supporting childcare in Portland since 2002, totaling $2.3 million
 to date. In 2024, American Rescue Plan money covered gaps from CDBG.
 o Covering costs of childcare for families looking for employment or school; the state
 assistance is only for people currently employed in school and there is a long waitlist.
 o The childcare voucher program helps people obtain and keep childcare using a 4 group
 collaboration: YFO, Catherine Morel, Saint Elizabeth’s and Portland Headstart.
 o Served 845 families since 2010.
 o Since July, the collaborative has averaged $6,500 per month in program expenses with
 YFO leading administration of the program.
 • Starting Strong informed recommendation.
 o School aged childcare averages $317/week.
 ▪ If the City funded $200,000 per year, it would provide 630 weeks of childcare.
 ▪ If the City funded $100,000 per year, it would provide 315 weeks of childcare.
 ▪ If the City funded $80,000 per year (current level), it would provide 252 weeks
 of childcare.
 • Committee questions
 o Councilor Bullett clarified the committee is choosing which level the committee would
 like to recommend.
 ▪ The tax rate stays the same regardless of choice.




 Page 4
 ▪ It is a gap program that is a bridge, not supporting families long term.
 ▪ The weeks of programming would support hundreds of kids.
 • No vote needed: one of the councilors needs to put forth an amendment as part of the finance
 committee budget process or to the full body; the entire committee agreed to move forwards and
 the committee thanked HCD Division Director, Mary Davis and American Rescue Plan
 Coordinator, Kaela Gonzalez for their work.
5. Warming and Cooling Shelter Planning (Caity Hager, Emergency Management
Coordinator)
 • Emergency Management Coordinator Hager presented options for managing cooling and
 warming shelters at the request of the committee.
 • Some staff time is dedicated to cooling and warming center planning, with warming pressing.
 • Some communities operate nightly in the winter, whereas Portland opens when certain
 temperature and weather thresholds are met.
 • Portland is limited to a lack of appropriate space.
 • Warming shelters: we facilitate private community partners operate overnight warming shelter
 funded by MaineHousing.
 • Nonprofit partner opens their space during the day for warming centers.
 • The EMC monitors weather and notifies partners when thresholds are met.
 • 2023- 2024 was based on a daily high apparent temperature of 20 degrees or snow accumulation
 of more than 10 inches.
 o Opened 17 times.
 • 2024-2025 was based on the overnight low of 15 degrees to be more often.
 o Open for 34 nights.
 • Cooling centers use the national weather advisory excessive heat warning as a trigger and the
 library is used as a cooling center.
 o If the library is not available other facilities can be used such as the ice arena.
 o 2023: activated twice
 o 2024: activated 5 times.
 • We have more extreme cold weather than warm weather; most need and gaps are with overnight
 warming shelter.
 • No one in Cumberland County applied to the warming shelter funding opportunity; after this
 Commonspace and First parish secured other Maine Housing funds to open an overnight
 warming shelter.
 o Commonspace explained successes and challenges in a memo.
 o Need professional and trained staff to operate a warming shelter in Portland.
 • Looked at cities identified by the league of women voters that were similar in population and
 size in relation to the rest of the state and looked at similar cities in New England as well as
 Lewiston and Bangor.
 o Half cities outside of New England do not have warming shelters.
 o Those that do operate nightly mostly in churches of in existing shelters.
 o Some found vacant buildings such as old schools when new ones are built or when a
 federal building was unused and able to use for very little.
 o Most are privately funding, with some grant funded and some municipal.
 o New England cities were more likely to coordinate.
 o Nashua, NH was the only municipality to operate overnight; it was a warming station but
 that operates overnight but does not have beds.




 Page 5
 o Portland stands out as the only one to operate its own emergency shelter.
• Possible options
 o Dedicated staff would not expand what the EMC and Social Services Director already do
 as the lack of an appropriate facility is the primary barrier.
 o A single site opened nightly during winter would have a fiscal impact and might be
 limited by zoning.
 o Facilitate multiple smaller sites open by threshold.
 o There are not many options without a large fiscal impact and there is not an appropriate
 space.
• Committee questions and discussion
 o Councilor Pelletier asked if we have tried to coordinate with other communities
 o Councilor Michniewicz asked if the allowable costs were described by MaineHousing.
 ▪ This was outside of the normal warming shelter funding but everything was
 funded by MaineHousing
 ▪ Could the day space being pursued also allow for overnight shelter?
 • The zoning of the day space location does not allow for it; the property
 owner would need to seek a zoning amendment approved by the council.
 o Councilor Fournier asked if the state will fund a Commonspace and First parish
 partnership to operate a warming shelter next year as they did this year?
 ▪ That is still unknown.
 o Does MSHA money cover low barrier or are there restrictions to how the population can
 access?
 ▪ Since the organizations apply directly, we cannot confirm.
 o Councilor Pelletier asked about the Salvation Army offering space.
 ▪ They may have had a change in leadership and since the change, we have not
 been able to utilize their space.
 ▪ He would like to look at some sort of rotation between facilities.
 ▪ For staffing, there were many people who wanted to help: is there aa way for us
 to coordinate trained staff?
 • Prior to MSHA funding, there was a community volunteer effort with a
 threshold of 5 degrees; it was very difficult to mobilize volunteers
 during a blizzard. It would be too challenging to do a fully volunteer
 effort.
 ▪ Zoning: is there a way to queue this up ahead of time or do we need to know the
 exact property ahead of time?
 • A temporary shelter in an emergency context can operate for 180 days
 but the challenge is planning for a permanent or yearly shelter is not
 temporary.
 o Councilor Michniewicz flagged the extreme challenges of the population using the
 Warming Shelter. Could there be a separate shelter serving people with less challenges
 that would be easier for staff to serve?
 ▪ Warming shelter is supplemental to the shelters we do have. The HSC and
 Milestone are open and available.
 ▪ Assistant City Manager Libner clarified the councilor is asking about different
 warming shelters serving different populations in the context of a multi-site
 warming shelter plan.




 Page 6
 • The lack of space, staffing, and funding would still exist and it would
 depend of the operators of the shelters.
 • We would support if there was interest by nonprofit partners.
 • It would be difficult to bar people with behavioral health needs form any
 publicly funded shelter.
 • Councilor Bullett reiterated that the City has a large low barrier shelter and that the warming
 shelter serves a vary specific high needs populations and thanked Commonspace and First
 Parish. She will follow up with the Mayor, GPCOG and the County public health department.


6. Public Safety Update (Chad Johnston, Fire Chief)
Other business
 • Department Make Up
 o 229 FTEs at 10 Fire Stations with 4 Engines, 4 Ladders, and 5 Medcu:
 ▪ 17 Administrative Staff
 ▪ 53 Field Ops per shift (4 shifts)
 • 1 at City Wide Deputy Chief
 • 5 at Munjoy, Ladder/Medcu
 • 5 at Central, Engine/Medcu
 • 8 at Bramhall, Engine/Ladder/Medcu
 • 5 at Rosemont, Ladder/Medcu
 • 3 at Riverton, Engine
 • 5 at Northgate, Ladder/Medcu
 • 3 at East Deering, Engine
 • 3 at Fireboat
 • 3 at Citywide Heavy Rescue Co.
 • 1 at Citywide Paramedic Fly Car
 • 1 at Peaks Island
 • 3 at Jetport Crash Trucks
 • 7 – Vacation/Sick Coverage
 • Operations:
 o Fire Chief, Chad Johnston
 ▪ Asst. Chief, Chris Goodall
 • Deputy Chief, John Cenate
 o Captain ARFF, William VanDeinse
 • Division Chief, Sean Donaghue
 o Captain EMS, Sheldon Gregoire
 • Deputy Chief, Kevin McGuire
 o Captain L3, Ryan Walsh
 o Captain L6, Chris Tillotson
 • Deputy Chief, Shawn Neat
 o Captain L1, John Hardy
 o Captain L4, Mark Stewart
 o Captain R1, Dale Dyer
 • Deputy Chief, Jonathan Hendricks
 o Captain E6, David Nichols




 Page 7
 o Captain E9, Justin Bragdon
 o Captain Marine, Chris Alves
 • Deputy Chief, Vacant
 o Captain E5, Curtis Magnuson
 o Captain E11, Brad James
 o Captain E12, Scott Krum
• Staff
 o Gender
 ▪ 14 Female: 6%
 ▪ 218 Male: 94%
 o Education
 ▪ 93 Highschool: 40%
 ▪ 64 Associates: 28%
 ▪ 70 Bachelors: 30%
 ▪ 5 Masters: 2%
 o Primary Residence
 ▪ 29 Portland: 13%
 ▪ 118 Cumberland City: 54%
 ▪ 37 York City: 17%
 ▪ 11 Androscoggin County: 5%
 ▪ 10 Other Maine City: 4%
 ▪ 9 New Hampshire: 4%
 ▪ 3 Massachusetts: 1%
 o EMS Level
 ▪ 98 AEMT: 47%
 ▪ 66 EMTP: 32%
 ▪ 43 EMTB: 21%
 o Rank
 ▪ 156 Firefighter: 70%
 ▪ 44 Lieutenant: 20%
 ▪ 16 Captain: 7%
 ▪ 7 Chief Officer: 3%
 o Years of Service
 ▪ 79 1-4: 33%
 ▪ 32 5-9: 13%
 ▪ 38 10-14: 16%
 ▪ 12 15-19: 5%
 ▪ 53 20-24: 22%
 ▪ 15 25-29: 6%
 ▪ 14 >30: 6%
 o Retention
 ▪ Spike in hiring in 20202 with 29 (8 – 12 is typical).
 ▪ Spike in resignations in 2022 with 10 attributed to Covid Stress and being
 understaffed; better staffing now with less overtime and advanced life skills
 moves that cover ambulances.




 Page 8
 • The high forced overtime were high in 2021 and 2022 at 199 and 162
 but dropped dramatically to 18 and 42 in 2023 and 2024 with 4 to date
 in 2025.
 • Similar trend in ALS moves with 137 and 303 in 2021 and 2022,
 dropping down to 98 and 67 in 2023 and 2024 with 9 to date in 2025.
 o There are multiple special teams that assist the 17 administrative staff with opportunities
 to get involved in special projects and roles that supports retention.
• Fires
 o  2022: 379
 ▪ Building Fires: 44
 ▪ Cooking Fires: 100
 ▪ Vehicle Fires: 21
 ▪ Dumpster/Trash Fires: 75
 ▪ Outside Fires: 107
 ▪ Other Fires: 32
 o 2023: 399
 ▪ Building Fires: 33
 ▪ Cooking Fires: 119
 ▪ Vehicle Fires: 19
 ▪ Dumpster/Trash Fires: 84
 ▪ Outside Fires: 73
 ▪ Other Fires: 71
 o 2024: 328
 ▪ Building Fires: 40
 ▪ Cooking Fires: 75
 ▪ Vehicle Fires: 34
 ▪ Dumpster/Trash Fires: 64
 ▪ Outside Fires: 67
 ▪ Other Fires: 48
 o Numbers are consistent over time.
• EMS Calls
 o Calls for service dropped in 2020.
 o Calls go up 3-6% every year and over time causes issues:
 ▪ Run volume
 • We need to add an ambulance every decade.
 • An ambulance was last added in 2013.
 ▪ Number of employees
 ▪ Managing 5 ambulances when we need 6.
 • Using a grant to staff a 6th ambulance during peak hours.
 • Next year the grant money likely won’t be available; need to identify
 funding for the 6th ambulance.
• Responses by District
 o Munjoy: 1,548
 o Central: 3,969
 o Bramhall: 4,189
 o Rosemont: 3,504
 o Riverton: 2,693




 Page 9
 ▪ Riverton volume was in line with Deering before opening the HSC. We have the
 capacity to meet the increased need.
 o North Deering: 1,786
 o East Deering: 1,570
 o Islands & CB: 395
 ▪ Islands and Casco Bay are calls to the water and mostly on Peaks.
 o Out of Town: 281
 ▪ Mutual aid with our neighbors; most communities have the bandwidth for
 normal days but we rely on them on high volume days.
 o Attempt to distribute workload as evenly as possible with steady year over year call
 volume for each company.
 o Call volume at the airport increased from 2023 to 2024 and call volume for Marine and
 Peaks decreased from 2023 to 2024.
 • 2024 Cardiac Arrests
 o 107 Cardiac Arrests
 o 66 Resuscitation Attempts
 o 24 ROSC – Return of Spontaneous Circulation
 o 20 Survived Event
 ▪ Innovations in response has drastically increased survivals.
 • Strategic Priorities & Department Initiatives
 o Enhancing community safety and engagement;
 o Improving operational efficiency and effectiveness;
 o Strengthening Firefighter health and wellness;
 o Maintaining and modernizing equipment and infrastructure;
 o Enhancing leadership and workforce development.
 • The committee thanked the Chief and Jessie Lemieux’s work on this presentation and
 highlighted the cardiac data and improvement in response and for ride along opportunities. The
 committee did not have questions.

7. Next Meeting: May 13, 2025
 • Noted Agenda:
 o Built for Zero
 o Public Safety Update: PD
 o Childcare Concept Proposal

Councilor Bullett entertained a motion to adjourn. Councilor moved to adjourn, Councilor seconded; the
motion passed unanimously 4-0 and the meeting adjourned at 7:14 PM.




 Page 10
 HUB 2 - City of Portland
 Nakesha Warren, Homeless Response Hub Coordinator
 Email: nwarren@uwsme.org.

Hub 2 is the largest Hub in the state serving approximately 50% of people
experiencing homelessness of which 90% of participants connect to homeless
service resources through the City of Portland. The City of Portland’s collaboration
through the shelters and outreach teams have assisted in connecting 1,218 of the
2,144 participants currently connected to the system. This number does not include
clients who have been exited from CES. The City of Portland and their shelter,
Diversion, and Outreach Teams play an imperative role in locating and connecting
participants we've lost contact with at every stage of experiencing homelessness.
These teams build a rapport with clients and really work hard to advocate on their
behalf in all circles. The City of Portland providers work closely with other
providers and the Hub to ensure clients are represented and connected to the
resources that will best help them be successful.

 ●​ Current Access Points through the C.O.P.
 ●​ Homeless Services Center (HSC) & Family Shelter
 ●​ Homeless Outreach Team
 ●​ Prevention & Diversion Team
 ●​ HOPE Project
 ●​ Portland Public Health

The City’s ESHAP, HOPE Project, and RRH Programs offer navigation services also
to those just entering homelessness and those who are the most vulnerable and
hardest to house. The HOPE Project is not required to accept clients through the
system but because of the benefit of the BfZ & CES Model they see how it is the
best way to connect clients to this resource.

Previous & Current Collaborations between the City & the Hub
 ●​ Taskforce Collaboration
 ○​ Worked to get everyone on the BNL assessed and connected to CES/BfZ.
 ○​ Identified the need for additional outreach within the City.
 ●​ Navigator Collaboration Meeting
 ○​ A bi-weekly meeting to assist providers who are struggling to house a client
 deemed difficult to house or struggling to keep them housed.




 Page 11
 HUB 2 - City of Portland

Needs of the Hub based on data;
 ●​ Housing Stability Providers
 ○​ Work with clients once they’ve moved into housing but need additional
 supports after programs previously enrolled in have ended, i.e. STEP, ESHAP.
 ●​ Outreach
 ○​ The city has added 4 outreach positions which have been so helpful to the
 Hub and BfZ work. We still see with data that we lose contact with clients
 regularly.

To view data specific to Hub 2 our Statewide Maine Homelessness Interactive Dashboard
on the new Maine Homeless Planning. On the dashboard you can view statewide and Hub
data for the following categories.
 ●​ Actively Homeless Count
 ○​ Providers you the Monthly Inflow and Outflow
 ○​ New entries into the system and returned from inactivity or housed
 ○​ Number of Housing placements & exited to inactivity
 ●​ Subpopulations
 ○​ Youth
 ○​ Veterans
 ○​ Families
 ●​ Hub Data Quality
 ○​ Ensuring we have reliable quality data




 Page 12
City of Portland | Executive Department
Danielle P. West, City Manager

To: Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committee
 Councilor Anna Bullett, Chair
From: Dena Libner, Assistant City Manager
Date: May 9, 2025
Re: Childcare Concept Proposal




 MEETING DATE
May 13, 2025

AGENDA ITEM
Item #5 - Childcare Concept Proposal

PURPOSE
City staff are seeking Committee feedback on a concept designed to increase childcare availability
and affordability for residents and employees of the City of Portland. Action is not being
requested of the Committee at this time.

COMMITTEE WORK PLAN/CITY COUNCIL GOAL ALIGNMENT​
The Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committee (HHS & PS Committee) included
“Childcare in Portland” as a priority on its 2025 Work Plan.

BACKGROUND/ANALYSIS
In February 2025, the HHS & PS Committee hosted a panel discussion on the “State of Childcare in
Portland.” Panelists discussed the significant childcare challenges experienced by families locally
and nationally, as well as several of the potential policy solutions the public sector may consider.

Committee members confirmed their commitment to this issue at a subsequent meeting by
expressing support for a $200,000 amendment to the FY26 budget to expand the Portland
Childcare Scholarship Collaborative, which provides scholarships to low-income families to help
with the costs of childcare while they are temporarily ineligible for the State of Maine’s Child Care
Affordability Program (CCAP).

At the same time, as part of an ongoing workplace culture initiative, City staff have been
evaluating opportunities to improve employee recruitment and retention. Since childcare
surfaced as a contributing factor to recruitment and retention challenges, an employee survey
was conducted to learn more (see enclosed results summary).

In response to the Committee’s interest in this area, as well as the results of the City of Portland
employee surveys, City staff have begun developing an initiative to provide daily childcare for
children aged 0 to 5 in an underused City of Portland facility. While details are still being
determined, the concept currently includes the following:



 1

 Page 13
 ●​ The facility would be located on the Barron Center campus, in a building referred to as
 Barron Center II (“BC2”). This building currently includes approximately 16,000 square
 feet of unused, ground-floor space, and is zoned appropriately for a childcare facility (zone
 B-2);

 ●​ The facility would serve Portland residents, with a percentage of spaces set aside for City
 of Portland employees;

 ●​ The facility would be run by a private, licensed childcare provider, with a lease for the
 space awarded through a Request for Proposals (RFP);

 ●​ No fiscal impact is anticipated at this time.

Many operational details would be determined through the RFP process. A draft RFP is expected
to be brought to the Council’s Housing & Economic Development Committee for consideration on
June 17, 2025.

FISCAL IMPACT
At this time there is no anticipated fiscal impact associated with this concept.

CONCLUSION(S)
N/A

PRIOR COMMITTEE REVIEW
N/A

PREPARED BY

Dena Libner Greg Watson, Director​
Assistant City Manager​ Housing & Economic Development​
​ ​
Anne Torregrossa, Director​ Maggie McLoughlin, Director
Human Resources Health & Human Services

Ethan Hipple, Director
Parks, Recreation & Facilities


ATTACHMENTS
Childcare Survey Results (All CoP Staff, March 2025)

​




 2

 Page 14
Employee Childcare Survey Results
 March 17 - March 31, 2025




 Page 15
01
Who responded (and who didn’t)?
 Page 16
Who Responded (and Who Didn’t)


 The survey was sent to a list of
 1,625 COP email addresses.

 Of the 281 respondents, 85 had
 children under the age of six.

 In total, the 85 respondents are
 responsible for 114 children in
 the relevant age range.


 Also: all 281 respondents chose to take the
 survey in English.


 Page 17
02
Results by question
 Page 18
What age group(s) do your children fall into?




 Page 19
What type of childcare do you use?




 Page 20
Satisfaction with childcare arrangement




 Page 21
While working for CoP, have you ever reduced your work hours, taken
leave, or changed your schedule as a result of childcare challenges?




 Page 22
Have you ever considered resigning from your CoP position due to
childcare challenges?




 Page 23
03
Insights based on household income levels
 Page 24
Estimated household income




 Page 25
Insights based on household income (HI)
 ● Type of childcare: Respondents with higher HI tend to use licensed daycare
 centers; households earning under $50,000 rely mainly on sharing caregiving
 responsibilities with spouses/partners.

 ● Satisfaction with cost: Respondents with HI under $50,000 report significantly
 higher satisfaction compared to all other brackets. Dissatisfaction spikes sharply
 within the $50,000 - $100,000 range.

 ● Satisfaction with availability: Dissatisfaction is highest among mid- and
 higher-income households.

 ● Satisfaction with location: Dissatisfaction spikes among mid-income
 households.

 ● Satisfaction with hours of operation: Lower-income households reporting
 much higher satisfaction than others. Mid-income households have noticeably
 higher dissatisfaction rates than all other brackets.
 Page 26
05
Insights based on employment type
 Page 27
Employment type




 Page 28
Insights based on employment type
 ● Satisfaction with cost: Significant dissatisfaction was identified among
 permanent CoP employees, as well as employees who work outside traditional
 business hours (“shift employees”).

 ● Satisfaction with availability: Permanent employees expressed dissatisfaction
 at a high rate relative to other employment types. Universal dissatisfaction was
 reporting among project employees.




 Page 29

Health & Human Services and Public Safety Committee

 May 13, 2025, 5:30 PM Remote Meeting

Committee Attendance:
Anna Bullett, Chair (District 4), April Fournier (At-large), Sarah Michniewicz (District 1),
Wesley Pelletier (District 2).
Councilor Attendance: Pious Ali, (At-large)
Mayor Mark Dion


City Staff:
Adam Harr, Executive Assistant; Mark Dubois, Police Chief; Dena Libner, Assistant City
Manager; Maggie Mcloughlin, Director of Health and Human Services; Chad Johnston, Fire
Chief. Aaron Geyer, Director of Social Services;
Invited Panelists:
Amy Holland, Statewide Homeless Response System Coordinator; Nakesha Warren, Homeless
Response Hub 2 Coordinator.

1. Announcements
 • None.
2. Review and Approval of Minutes from April 10, 2025
 • Councilor Pelletier Moved to approve the minutes and seconded by Councilor Michniewicz. The
 minutes were approved unanimously 4-0.
3. Built for Zero Panel Discussion (Councilor Sarah Michniewicz)
 • Councilor Sarah Michniewicz explained how Portland takes an outsized role in the state’s
 homelessness response. A statewide effort saw Maine divided into 9 homeless response service
 hubs, adopting the Community Solutions Built for Zero model to get to functionally zero
 homelessness. Tonight, will look at how Portland fits into this systems-level data driven
 approach.
 • Amy Holland, The Statewide Homeless Response System Coordinator of the Maine State
 Housing Authority explained that the 9 hubs launched three years ago out of collaboration
 between the Statewide Homeless Council, The Maine Continuum of Care, and MaineHousing,
 with help from Community Solutions.
 o Each hub has a coordinator with a neutral employer of record so they work for the
 community, not just one provider in the hub.
 o Municipalities, General Assistance, Police, Health Providers
 o It is a theorized strategy proven to solve homelessness
 ▪ A by name list for each person experiencing homelessness in each up, including
 their preferred housing solution,
 ▪ A point in time counts once a year is not accurate or real time.
 ▪ At any point we can see how many people are experiencing homelessness in the
 hub and statewide.
 ▪ Identifying barriers and advocating for resources to fill gaps.
 ▪ Maine is one of five statewide BFZ initiatives.
 • We were the first state to implement the hub model.
 o Functional Zero is defined by a having more housing resources (Outflow) than enter
 homelessness (inflow).
 ▪ 15 communities have achieved this.
 o Efficiently targets resources on the by-name list. With at least 90% on the list, we can
 understand full nuanced picture and solutions.

 • Nakesha Warren, Homeless Response Hub 2 Coordinator.
 o  The work the City has done in Hub 2 has been essential.
 ▪ The HSC
 ▪ Prevention and Diversion
 ▪ Street Outreach
 ▪ HOPE
 • Have been able to connect people to resources without having stability
 or any connections around them.
 ▪ Public Health
 o 2,024 people are experiencing homelessness in Cumberland County.
 o The City of Portland’s teams have assessed over 1,200 people.
 ▪ Data informs increases in vouchers and resources.
 o The ECRT informed hub resources and added people to the hub by name list.
 o Collaborating on the people who are the hardest to house and finding the appropriate
 housing for ran individual to be successful, not just the first one available to be able to
 have a hosing placement.
 o Outreach collaboration where all hub 2 outreach providers in Portland came together to
 discuss capacity.
 o There is a new Maine Homeless Planning website:
 https://www.mainehomelessplanning.org/hubs/
 o Employment initiative
 ▪ Looking to help people at every area
 ▪ Our inflow numbers double our outflow numbers.
Committee questions and discussion
 • Councilor Fournier asked about the analysis of the data collected: who is analyzing the data and
 what actions are the data informing? March had 12 people return to homelessness and the trend
 line of total active going up. What is the context hub 2 and statewide?
 o It may not be that the number of people is increasing, but the number of providers adding
 quality data increased; we like to see the number going up at this point because we are
 getting closer to confidence that our data is complete. We will likely see it rise until we
 see our quality data milestone and then want to see it stay the same then decrease.
 o We are able to see basic trends.
 o Hub 2 case conferencing looks at people by name and can see the returns and collaborate
 on people case by case for people who have timed out of resources.
 ▪ Are we matching people to the right resource vs any resource to get people
 housed? the data informs how to proceed to find successful placements.
 • Mayor Dion asked if other municipalities in the county are contributing Data? What
 municipalities are participating in hub 1/York County?
 o Hub 2: South Portland is the other municipality participating coordinated entry.
 o Hub 1: Biddeford, Sanford, Saco, and Kittery.
 • Councilor Pelletier asked what the by name list looks like on the ground?
 o A by name list is as it sounds: a list by name of everyone experiencing homelessness in
 the hub. It contains HMIS data, including their demographics and sub population
 (veteran, DV, etc.) and the Coordinated Entry Assessment prioritizations core.
 o Once 90% of people experiencing homelessness are on the BNL and haver been assessed,
 we will have quality data.
 • Councilor Bullett asked about data entry and what support is coming from the state level to
 support his.
 o Data sharing agreements with entities that have larger capacity for data entry can enter
 data on behalf of smaller agencies that lack capacity via a data sharing agreement. This is
 happening in hub 1.
 o Pursuing funding through Community Solutions to have a statewide data specialist
 position to support the hubs.
 o Renewed support from the Statewide Homeless Council and Maine CoC.
 • Councilor Michniewicz asked if we are approaching quality data?
 o Hub 5 is close, likely within the next couple of months.
 o Each hub will be different.
 o Hub 2 is close too; September is the goal.
 o From there, the trends will be tracked with trust it is meaningful and can start advocating
 for targeted resources.
4. Public Safety Update (Mark Dubois, Police Chief)
 • YTD Citywide:
 o 8% increase for calls for service
 o 778 arrests compared to 764 last year.
 o Total calls for service: 23,013
 ▪ 17,000 911 calls
 ▪ 6,013 officer initiated calls, a 63% increase compared to last year.
 • Attributed to targeted enforcement and behavioral health calls such as the
 Monument Square response.
 • 71 overdoses last month (5 were fatal.)
 o Is that high?
 ▪ Consistent with last year.
 ▪ We sent an advisory when there were multiple overdoses in a short span of time
 • Shots were fired on Grant Street on Sunday and arrests have been made.
 • Last remaining person from last year’s Forest Ave shooting was apprehended.
 • Bayside
 o Calles for services decreased by 4% compared to last year.
 o Arrests increased 8% compared to last year.
 ▪ Warrants
 ▪ Violations of release
 ▪ Possession of drugs
 ▪ Trespass
 o Bayside calls for service: 4279 calls for service
 ▪ 1,652 officer initiated calls
 ▪ 2,627 911 calls.
 o There was a shooting in a DV situation (non-fatal)
 o Standoff with negotiators.
 ▪ Chemical munitions were used.
Committee questions and discussion
 • Councilor Pelletier asked for clearance rates from a former presentation.

5. Childcare Concept Proposal (Dena Libner, Assistant City Manager)
 • Seeking feedback before bringing to the Housing & Economic Development Committee.
 • At the same time the committee was looking at childcare, the City was looking for childcare
 solutions for staff as part or recruitment and retention, internally.
 • Internal analysis showed over 50% of respondents had considered leaving their position due to
 childcare.
 • Staff looked at solutions for affordable childcare and for retention.
 o Looked at Barron Center 2, three quarters of the building has been unused since before
 the pandemic. The other quarter is the Office of Elder Affairs.
 o We are getting close to seeing what is possible at that location and would need an RFP to
 prong childcare licensing expertise to us.
 o Will seek feedback from the state and fire marshal’s office to make the RFP stronger and
 successful when issued.
 o Proposal would prioritize Portland residents and have a set aside for City of Portland
 employees (who live in or outside the city)
 ▪ If it somehow did not fill up, would could a third option be?
 o Looking for a private provider in the Barron Center 2 space, not build a program in-
 house.
 o No fiscal impact at this concept stage, but there may be some revenue loss by moving
 some of the unused licensed beds; staff are researching this fiscal impact.
 o An operator would take on capital improvements needed at the site.
Committee questions and discussion
 • Councilor Ali asked if this would go on to the DSC budget in this current budget cycle?
 o No, it should not impact the fy26 budget.
 ▪ Depending on how much work is needed on the building the program likely
 wouldn’t start until fy27.
 • Councilor Pelletier asked what the percentage has been floated?
 o Hasn’t been discussed yet and is up in the air; it would be the decision of the HEDC to
 decide.
 • Mayor Dion thanked staff for their work and encourages moving this forward.
 • Councilor Michniewicz asked how much, if any, coordination will be needed between this and
 the housing planned for the Barron Center campus via the recent RFP?
 o None that we can foresee as the existing building is already well suited to this use.
 • Councilor Fournier thinks it’s an innovative way to use our resources to support our community
 and staff. What conditions can we put in re: % dedicated to staff and the hours of operation for
 the varied shift positions people staff at the City with before and after work hours.
 o The need for flexibility for shift employees is salient and we are identifying the specific
 barriers, such as opening hour(s) before normal hours or have flexible drop off/pick up.
 ▪ Cognizant of these for providers to be able to ramp up to and not be too
 restrictive that the program doesn’t get off the ground.
 ▪ `Make it clear these are the intents of year 2 of operation.
 ▪ Some orgs have this figured out (prime time evening care model)
 • Councilor Bullett requested mandatory Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) program
 participation for free meals to families that cannot pack lunch. Does the Barron center have a
 kitchen?
 o Yes.
 o There is possible reality where we get the CACFP money.



6. Next Meeting: May 13, 2025
 • HHS Annual Report
Councilor Michniewicz moved to adjourn and Councilor Pelletier Seconded. The motion passed
unanimously 4 -0 and the committee adjourned at 6:41 PM.