After a transitional housing project was rejected, the city council should stop fining the homeless and instead tell us how to find housing.
The city of Des Moines’ plan to impose fines on people sleeping in public is based on two key premises: A wide range of assistance and shelter options are available to the homeless, and there should be consequences for rejecting those options.
But advocates for the homeless argue that the choices are inadequate. And worse, the city council’s own actions stand in the way of adequacy.
More affordable housing — including emergency shelters, transitional housing and independent living that is manageable on low incomes — should take up nearly all of the city’s attention in this area. After the City Council rejected a plan for transitional housing last month, it would be helpful if the city clarified where it plans to move forward with this and similar projects. Residents should demand details about how Des Moines is trying to fill a million-dollar gap in services identified by the Polk County Homeless Planning Organization. And finally, the unhelpful proposal to charge homeless people money should be abandoned.
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The city should not abandon good housing projects in search of the perfect
It was hard to miss the contrast when, on the same day last month, the City Council proposed the sleepover ban and other policy changes and rejected a social services agency’s request to set up transitional housing for men in a vacant group home on the South Side. “A supportive community is also important to sustain the healing experienced by individuals during their stay at a Hope Ministries residential facility,” Hope Ministries wrote in its motion.
Four of the seven council members voted for Hope’s proposed exemption to allow 12 homeless shelter graduates to live in the shelter, but six votes were needed because residents of neighboring properties filed formal opposition, arguing that their neighborhood was the wrong place for such a shelter.
They are entitled to those views. But it is difficult to imagine what characteristics projects would have to have to be more acceptable. Hope Ministries has an exceptional track record and reputation. Two sides of the group home site are undeveloped woodland. A different council would have provided additional oversight of Hope’s management. The council recommended approval and the City Planning Commission voted 12 to 1. A neighbor wrote to the council saying he would prefer the transitional housing to the abandoned and unattended property.
Hope, in turn, said it would take 12 residents (rather than the eight the current zoning allows) to make the project financially viable. Freestanding group homes, which would require less extensive remodeling than other types of buildings, don’t come on the market often.
The result is a waste of time and effort on this doomed proposal. It is not practical to survey every Des Moines resident about hypothetical housing projects in their area, but perhaps the City Council can map out exactly where such necessary projects might hope to gain approval.
Yes, Des Moines has done a lot, but what is most important is the magnitude of the need
Supporters of fines for sleeping in public spaces and other ordinance changes have said they insist services be strengthened before enforcement occurs. Mayor Connie Boesen and others have pointed to several projects the city has approved and spent money on.
At the Aug. 5 council meeting, Councilman Josh Mandelbaum said the question is not how much the city has done or whether it is admirable, but whether the actions are meeting the need. He is right.
Homeward, the Polk County organization that addresses homelessness, said in January that nearly $20 million in additional investments are needed each year, including the creation of more than 500 new units of permanent supportive housing each year and about 500 additional units for more temporary needs.
City leaders know this, and it would be completely wrong to say Boesen, Council Member Chris Coleman, City Manager Scott Sanders and others aren’t taking the issue seriously. Coleman and Sanders are driving discussion and action through the Homeless Coordinating Council, organized by Homeward, and they are seeking help from other local governments through the Metro Advisory Council. Both bodies are meeting again soon, and the work there could help outline what medium- and long-term plans for affordable housing should look like.
The development and dissemination of these plans must occur before any other aspect of a City of Des Moines homelessness strategy.
A ban on sleeping is degrading and distracts from the main problem
No one is happy about visible signs of homelessness like tents lining bike paths, people begging at almost every highway exit and major intersection, and people settling for the night under bridges or in alleys. These symptoms represent failure.
But the failure is not because the city is too lenient. There is no point in insisting that homeless people get out of sight, which is the essence of a public overnight ban. And blaming the failure on the homeless themselves is a generalization at best, and unhelpful. No, the failure is due to a lack of adequate resources.
Let’s face it: This is a huge challenge. No major city in America is really doing it, and not many are making significant progress. But providing these resources should be the goal of Des Moines’ efforts.
Among the many obstacles is the reluctance of some residents to seek refuge in shelters. They have real fears, such as encountering former abusers or other enemies or getting into trouble. Giving residents the choice of facing these fears or being punished with fines or community service does not make Des Moines a better place.
Sanders, the city manager, on Aug. 5 put the onus on the council to hold off on final approval of these proposals until he was satisfied that adequate services were in place. Council members should take this seriously and remove the plan from their agenda on Aug. 19. They were still debating wording and new initiatives before voting on second reading, another sign that the issue is not yet ready for prime time.
We don’t think that will ever happen. Des Moines should permanently abandon the sleeping ban part of its plans and focus more on housing.
Lucas Grundmeier, on behalf of the editors of the Register
This editorial reflects the opinion of the Des Moines Register editorial board: Carol Hunter, managing editor; Lucas Grundmeier, opinion editor; and Richard Doak and Rox Laird, editorial board members.
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