Just outside Bend, Oregon, on Highway 97 lies the Juniper Ridge homeless encampment, also known by some locals as “Dirtworld.” It’s so popular among the homeless that it has its own Google business page.
As you approach the encampment, endless campers become visible over the top of rock walls, scattered through the forest. A burnt-out vehicle lies on its side near a camper and debris including several porta-potties, a dumpster, and a supply of drinking water. Dirt roads connect makeshift camps. Vehicles sit in a circle, a makeshift fortress surrounded by a wall of tarp. Broken glass, garbage, and spray-painted signs mark the ground.
A man died there last year after a dog attack, according to The Bulletin, and a nearby horse boarding business shut down because it became too dangerous for customers to ride, KTVZ reported.
“The crimes reported in these encampments cover the full range and include assaults, weapons offenses, sexual assaults, arsons, and homicide,” Deschutes County District Attorney Steve Gunnels said.
Thanks to radical Democrat housing and drug policies, rural Oregon has been battling homelessness and the resulting crime for years. But with pending reforms and an upcoming Supreme Court ruling this June, some local leaders see light at the end of the dirty encampment tunnel.
Anticipating Change
Deschutes County, Oregon’s fastest-growing for its tourism and outdoor recreation, has struggled with homelessness for years, according to Gunnels. The county is located in rural, conservative Central Oregon, which has seen homelessness increasing steadily since 2015.
Gunnels, however, said
