MISSOULA — After 25 hours of discussion, a recommended solution to urban camping across Missoula will be presented to the Missoula City Council.
The Urban Camping Work Group met five times starting in February with the goal of developing an action plan to address the rising number of unhoused people sleeping on Missoula streets and in public parks.
Their proposed solution is to create a designated campsite. The authorized campsite will provide security and waste management.
The site would be monitored by the City of Missoula and community partners, with the Missoula Police Department's involvement only when necessary.
The resolution also immediately calls for more trash receptacles, toilets and showers, and storage lockers to be installed across Missoula.
“The resolution… is only the start of a process, and I really want to emphasize that,” Missoula Mayor Andrea Davis said at a press conference Tuesday. “It’s to act and by doing so we can put some immediate things in place while also working on short, mid and longer-term initiatives.”
While a fully implemented campsite will likely take more than a year to establish, Davis said the issue is in need of quick solutions.
Summer means higher temperatures and a higher number of urban campers, but it also means students are out of school and more likely to visit the same spaces where unhoused Missoulians sleep.
Keeping the time of year in mind, the proposed resolution outlines a buffer zone that prohibits camping in Missoula.
The buffer zone will include certain parks, such as McCormick and Caras Park, and areas around schools, businesses and residential units.
Spaces not included in the buffer zone will allow camping from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. People will not be allowed to set up permanent shelters anywhere in the city.
“We believe this strikes a reasonable balance between responding to community concerns, keeping our amenities usable for all and protecting our waterways while also continuing to provide shelter facilities, giving those unable to access shelter a place to camp overnight, and outlining a directive to work on long term solutions,” said Missoula City Council President Amber Sherrill.
Included in the resolution is the possibility of a parking program — either a permanent parking permit system or designated overnight parking lots.
The resolution also discusses how to protect urban campers during dangerous weather.
In 2021, the City of Missoula established an authorized campsite near the Walmart on Reserve Street using COVID-19 relief money. After funding ran dry, however, the site was closed down.
Mayor Davis and Sherrill both said that the recent Urban Camping Work Group has already equipped them to have more information and a better chance of success than the previous attempt.
“We’re positioned to make some better decisions, some more informed decisions, and make that a success,” Sherrill said. “We’ve been looking at lots of different programs around the country and I’m excited to see as the Mayor takes on this giant challenge. But with more information than we’ve had in the past.”
There are still several unknowns about the authorized site, including its location, management and where funding will come from.
Davis mentioned a possible partnership with the Poverello Center, Hope Rescue Mission and Partnership Health, but also said these organizations are already at capacity for providing care.
If the resolution is adopted by the Missoula City Council at the Wednesday meeting, further details will be decided in the coming months.
The site is not, at this time, considered a replacement for the Johnson Street Shelter, which will remain open for at least another year. The goal, as stated in a Missoula City Council resolution last year, is to demolish the Johnson Street Shelter within three years.
In the meantime, the city plans to install showers, improve the lock mechanism on all doors, add beds and renovate the exterior of the Johnson Street building to make it more attractive for the surrounding neighborhoods.
The full resolution can be found here, and it will be voted on during the committee as a whole meeting at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.
