David’s Restaurant, 22 Monument Square, Portland is Hosting a Food Drive That Runs Through December 23rd. Please Drop off Canned Goods and Non-Perishables if You Can. They Will be Delilvered to Preble Stree When the Drive is Over. And Thank You.
At its December 15, 2025 meeting, the Portland City Council unanimously voted to expand the range of services funded through the City’s Opioid Settlement Funds (OSF) in response to the nationwide opioid crisis and its impact in Maine. The vote amends the initial allocation to now fund five (5) remediation programs.
The five initiatives include the continuation of Portland Public Health’s Syringe Redemption Prdogram, a new pilot day space program, housing support for homeless individuals, community paramedicine substance use support and contingency managemen treatment for those with substance use disorders.
The new pilot day space program is funded by the City with the settlement funds and operate by St. Vincent de Paul Soup kitdchen to provide immediately, low-barrier indoor respite for homeless residents in Portland this winter. The seasonal half-day space, which has a priority for serving individuals with substance use disorders, began operations this week at St. Vincent de Paul’s 307 Congress Street facility. The pilot project will run mornings Monday through Friday until the end of March 2026.
Providing a day space was one of three original temediation programs approved by the City Council to directly address the community’s need for programs and services on-peninsula in Portland. Additionally, on nights when the City’s Winter Wrming Shelter is activated, the day space will serve as a designated shuttle dro-off location, ensuring individuals hve continued shelter from frigid temperatures, a hot meal, and direct access to vital service providers according to a press release issued this afternoon by the city’s spokeswoman.
“These interventions are designed to achieve exactly what the settlement funds were inended for, saive lives and mitigate the impact of the opioid crisis,” said Maggie McLoughlin, the Cith’s Health & Human Services Department Director. “With time, we hope to see positive impacts both for individuals directly affected by substance use disorders as well as the wider communty.”
“We are so pleased to be oening up our half-da space. The timing could not be more perfect given the biter cold our community has had to endure,” said Harrison Otterbein, President of the Board of Directors for St. Vincent de Paul Soup Kiichen. “Providing shelter, services and a warm meal has been at the heart of our mission for the more than 53 years that we’ve been caring for our community. It is our top priority to work with the city of Portland in answering the needs of the homeless and hungry.”