Missoula approves security contract for shelter neighborhoods, parks

MISSOULA — Members of the Missoula City Council on Wednesday approved a one-year contract to provide security around the city's two homeless shelters and help enforce the city's new policy on urban camping.

The $670,000 contract with Black Knight passed on a 9-2 vote with council members Daniel Carlino and Kristen Jordan voting in opposition.

They were also alone in supporting an amendment that would have stripped the security officers of their firearms and required them to wear body cameras.

“Private companies should not be patrolling the streets of Missoula telling people what to do and acting like emergency services,” Carlino said. “It's bizarre having a private company do this.”

City officials reiterated several times that the contracted security officers are not “patrolling the streets of Missoula.”

Dale Bickel, the city's chief administrative officer, said the contract is intended to address issues in city parks and along the public right of way surrounding the shelters.

“They're an important partner for us in helping us make sure people are following the rules and feel safe in our parks,” said Bickell. “They're helping with the education and outreach requirements of the urban camping ordinance, and they can also provide warnings under the ordinance.”

However, the security officers cannot issue citations and they cannot deal with private property issues around the shelters, according to former Missoula Police Chief Mike Brady, who now heads risk management for the city.

“If neighbors have an issue on their property, it's private property and it needs to be addressed as a police matter,” Brady said. “Black Knight can't respond to a private property complaint.”

According to Black Knight, its security officers since January have responded to 183 calls to the Poverello Center, with 72 calls being requests for the removal of an individual. They also have been called to the Johnson Street shelter 238 times, with 95 calls being a request for removal.

Carlino offered a number of amendments to the contract, including one that would have prevented the security officers from carrying a firearm. However, the amendment failed.

“If we're going to have people patrol the streets with weapons and telling people what to do, it should be a public entity so we have proper oversight,” Carlino said. “There's too many moving parts and variables when we use a private company to patrol the streets.”

However, city officials said state law permits nearly any individual in Montana to carry a firearm and they questioned the legality of including that restriction in the contract.

“Any general citizen in Montana can walk around carrying a firearm,” said Assistant Police Chief Jake Rosling, who added that the law includes security officers. “It's a matter of them protecting themselves. I certainly wouldn't want to do the job Black Knight is doing without having a means to protect myself.”