SquareOne Villages, City of Eugene & HIV Alliance to Partner on a New Transitional Housing Community – Rainbow Corner

Eugene, OR, March 17, 2025 – HIV Alliance, SquareOne Villages, and the City of Eugene are pleased to announce their partnership on a new micro-safe sleep site, Rainbow Corner. The site will be located on City of Eugene property and will primarily serve individuals who are in services at HIV Alliance and unhoused. The community will act as a bridge to the stability of affordable permanent housing for those experiencing homelessness.

HIV Alliance is honored to partner with SquareOne Villages and the City of Eugene on this project,” said HIV Alliance Executive Director Renee Yandel. “HIV infection rates are 16 times higher for people who are unhoused as compared those who are stably housed, and multiple studies have shown that housing status is a stronger predictor of contracting HIV than gender, race, age, drug use or other factors. Being housed has been proven to have a significant impact on medication adherence and overall viral suppression, as well.”

The six-unit community consists of pallet shelters, community spaces, a kitchen, and shower/restroom facilities. The site is fenced and will use a similar governance model to Opportunity Village, meaning residents will use democratic process to make decisions about how the community is operated and managed. Under the agreement, SquareOne Villages constructed the site with privately donated funds and HIV Alliance will be sub-contracted to staff the site using funds from a Trillium Community Health Plan Community Benefit Initiative grant.

Taylor Christianson has been hired as site manager and will serve as the onsite point of contact for residents. The site is expected to open in early April 2025 and will be completely occupied upon opening.

“We are excited to work with HIV Alliance on this project,” Public Advocacy Director at SquareOne Villages, Dan Bryant, said. “This will be a huge benefit for unhoused clients of HIV Alliance as they work to move into permanent housing.”

In 2023, Trillium Community Health Plan awarded funds to local organizations that provide service to communities among their Tri-County and Southwest regions. All grant funding is designed to support projects that drive healthcare quality solutions to improve the social determinants of health through community benefit initiatives.

For more information about HIV Alliance, visit www.hivalliance.org. For more information about SquareOne Village, visit www.squareonevillages.org. For more information about Trillium, visit www.trilliumohp.com. Renee Yandel, Executive Director, at HIV Alliance and Dan Bryant, Public Advocacy Director at SquareOne Villages are available for interviews. Please reach out to Brooks McLain, Development Director at HIV Alliance, to schedule an interview: bmclain@allianceor.org or 541-510-1038.

About HIV Alliance
HIV Alliance was founded in Eugene, Oregon in 1994 to support people living with HIV/AIDS and prevent new HIV infections. We are committed to not only addressing our clients’ needs for HIV-specific care and prevention services, but to reducing all barriers to wellness. Our prevention and care programs work together to support and protect people living with and at-risk for HIV in our community, and we are able to provide comprehensive support to respond to a variety of needs experienced by our clients.

About SquareOne Villages
SquareOne Villages is a community land trust with a mission of creating democratic communities with homes that are permanently affordable and environmentally sustainable. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve established a track record of delivering innovative “outside the box” shelter and housing, and currently specialize in developing permanently affordable housing co-ops.
About Trillium Community Health Plan

Trillium Community Health Plan serves Oregon Health Plan members through the CCO model, which began in 2012. Trillium is a recognized leader for outstanding coordination of care. It was first awarded a contract with the state of Oregon to help manage care for the Oregon Health Plan in 1999. Trillium partners with an extensive group of providers to improve care and access to services for OHP members. For more information, please visit our website.

About City of Eugene Shelter Efforts
Learn more about the City of Eugene’s alternative shelter program at Shelter | Eugene, OR Website.