MISSOULA — A task force assigned by the mayor to address issues around urban camping continued to work toward a policy on Wednesday, March 27, 2024, that's generally agreeable to a majority of the group and “socially acceptable” to Missoula residents.
With 25 people at the table and an equal number of opinions and desired outcomes, crafting policy recommendations for the City Council presents a difficult challenge, but one that members of the task force have taken up in recent weeks.
“You got people way over on this end who are going to be extreme, and people on the other end who are going to be extreme. You're never going to solve it for everyone,” said facilitator Ginny Tribe. “We aren't here to solve all the problems related to homelessness.”
But the task force, created by Mayor Andrea Davis, does seek to achieve a number of goals. Among them, it looks to define the problems created by and associated with urban camping and find general agreement on desired outcomes.
It also looks to recommend actionable solutions and regulatory tools – and monitoring metrics – that support community safety. Members of the group on Wednesday shared feedback from their mailbox regarding the wide range of opinions in Missoula related to the issues around urban camping.
“Whether I seek opinions or not, I get them,” said council member Mirtha Becerra. “They range from the city should be doing more to help our unhoused community to not having (homeless) people in Missoula. There are issues with safety and cleanliness.”
Addressing the challenges
The city in recent years has directed millions of dollars toward homelessness, from covering the pay of shelter workers to opening and managing a second homeless shelter. It helped subsidize housing for the homeless, increased resources and programming and ramped up new strategies to head off the problem.
But last year, issues around urban camping swelled. It prompted some to call for more homeless resources and others to express frustration around the resulting issues. Complaints over trash and human waste in the river, needles in public parks and an increase in crime around the Johnson Street Shelter eventually forced the city to look closer at the problem.
Still, its options remain constrained by the Ninth Circuit Court and available funding, city officials have said. Whatever the task force recommends in terms of a city ordinance or policy must take a wide range of issues into consideration.
“The term ordinance means something more than a mere verbal motion or resolution,” said Tribe. “It must be carried out with formalities and solemnities. It's basically the rules of the game.”
Mayor Davis last November asked the City Council to delay its pending decision on an urban camping ordinance until the new administration settled in and had time to work with City VCouncil on a suitable policy.
As the task force now works to create that policy, Davis said public sentiment often includes “letting people be” and increasing compassion for and wider understanding of the homeless. But she also hears calls for more accountability, safety and cleanliness, and a growing sense of frustration across the community.
“I'm hearing more and more from folks in the community that support a lot of the initiatives the city takes on, but are feeling exhausted by this situation,” she said. “They're starting to feel like they've lost patience over it.”
Striving for policy
Wednesday's meeting marked the third session held by the group, which includes all 12 members of City Council. It also includes homeless advocates, members of the business community and legal officers.
Despite the range of representation, many of the interests continue to overlap including concerns for community safety, cleanliness and protecting the city's environmental resources, namely the Clark Fork River. Some seek more compassion, some more accountability, and some more concern for city residents.
“There's a lot of frustration. Frustration for taxpayers, frustration for business owners and frustration for the folks who are very compassionate about the unhoused,” said group member Heather Schwenk. “A lot of people said this is their lifestyle choice. I think it's accountability in how you address the issues that come, but also providing a pathway out for people who do want to get out of it.”
Work completed over hours during past sessions has helped the group move closer to drafting “an effective, durable and affordable legal policy and enforceable ordinance pertaining to this situation.”
They've also expressed an interest in mitigating the economic impacts related to homelessness and to create authorized campsites with services provided. Some seek to spread those costs across the whole community while others are seeking a policy that's “practical and economically feasible.”
Council member Kristen Jordan expressed frustration with the process in general.
“I feel frustration that the premise under which this working group was set up was to mitigate the effects of urban camping rather than having a cohesive approach that addresses the needs of all interest groups,” she said. “They're singling out a vulnerable population that has very few resources. They're expected to comply to rules that don't make any sense.”
The task force will hold its fourth session in April and its fifth meeting shortly after if necessary. The group is expected to offer recommendations to the Missoula City Council this spring.
