Residents, nonprofits, law enforcement, businesses focus on solutions along Fourth Plain corridor

The foil and straws used to smoke fentanyl are commonly found around Fourth Plain, as well as other areas of Vancouver. They’ve almost entirely replaced the needles people might find for heroin use when that was the drug plaguing Clark County.

“There’s no going back to five years ago. This is the new normal until something stronger replaces fentanyl,” Fischer said.

Fentanyl drove up overdoses 500 percent in Clark County between 2018 and 2022, according to Columbia River Mental Health Services.

Drug use at parks is scaring families, said Gabriela Mendoza Ewing, executive director of Hispanic Disability Support Southwest Washington, who lives and works on the corridor. Recently, she and her co-workers panicked when they heard gunshots go off down the street.

“I see some members of the community more concerned about safety,” Mendoza Ewing said. “I see a growing need for mental health and a lack of mental health services.”

In response, Columbia River Mental Health Services in October launched a behavioral health team as an alternative to police response for those in crisis along the Fourth Plain corridor. The team arrives in a van with water, snacks and blankets, and then connects those in need with resources.

Police still respond to calls along Fourth Plain. Vancouver police Officer Jeremy Vanroyce said about 4.5 percent of the city’s crimes occur in the corridor. In addition, residents say homelessness — which increased by 43 percent between 2021 and 2022 in Clark County — has become highly visible along Fourth Plain.

Jamie Spinelli, homeless response manager for the city of Vancouver, said the city is helping people on the Fourth Plain corridor through the Homeless Assistance and Resources Team. But not enough preventive measures, including rental assistance, are in place to keep people from falling into homelessness, she said.

“We have more need than we have resources available,” Spinelli said.

Fischer said people in the community should not lose hope, even though times are tough. He pointed to Vancouver Public Schools programs that focus on prevention by addressing the issues that can turn people to drugs in the first place, such as trauma and addiction in their homes.

With the opening of Columbia River Mental Health Services’ new NorthStar Clinic, more drug treatment services than ever are available in Vancouver. Residents can access naloxone — an opioid reversal medication — for free at Recovery Cafe on Fourth Plain Boulevard.

Meanwhile, although Vancouver Intergroup Alcoholics Anonymous considered moving its office, it decided to stay put, Zink said. She said she hopes to help more people now that the office is staying, whether it’s inside the office or outside in the parking lot.

She’s happy the community is focusing on helping people, both those in crisis and their neighbors.

“They’re actually looking for solutions to the problem,” Zink said.