Fort Collins: Ending camping ban won't help homeless

Fort Collins' camping ban is here to stay after a City Council discussion on homelessness that inevitably strayed into the city's transient troubles. 

Deputy City Manager Jeff Mihelich told the council Tuesday night during a work session that staff looked at several cities, including Denver and Portland, Oregon, that have allowed public camping. What they found wasn't promising — those communities have stopped allowing camping or have had to do police sweeps in the camps, Mihelich said. 

"They thought they were helping people, but at the end of the day what was being created was unsafe and unsanitary for people," Mihelich said. "We haven't found a single community that has found allowing camping has helped." 

Councilmember Ross Cunniff, who represents District 5 in west-central Fort Collins, said he agreed "100 percent" with not changing the ban. Cunniff has long voiced his concerns for preserving natural areas and keeping those who visit them safe.

Councilmember Gino Campana, who represents District 3 in southeast Fort Collins, said he has "zero interest" in removing the ban and turned the conversation on reducing homelessness back to transient issues. 

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Campana said while he thinks the city is making traction against homelessness — the number of homeless individuals surveyed during the winter dropped 3.7 percent from 2015 to 2016 — issues surrounding transients are worsening.

"I don't know how to deal with it, but it's over half of the comments I'm getting from constituents, including texts, emails, calls and stopping me in the grocery store," Campana said. "I don't think we can ignore the fact that it's increasing." 

Fort Collins Police Services issue 100 tickets a month to people who are identified as transient and homeless, and jail up to 30, Chief John Hutto and Assistant Chief of Police Jerry Schiager told councilmembers Tuesday. 

Mihelich said police get 20 calls for police services related to transients every day. In the past two years, four police officers have been added to downtown and school resource officers have been temporarily reassigned to the downtown area during summer. Still, issues continue to bubble in Old Town and beyond.

"We are inundated with transient-related calls," Schiager said. "To be frank, some of what we're providing to people in need is encouraging that." 

Proposals to address transient issues were few, although council members agreed Outreach Fort Collins shows promise.

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But police said their tools are limited unless someone is breaking the law. 

"We have to draw that line between unwanted versus illegal behavior," Schiager said. 

Solutions for reducing homelessness, previewed by city staff before the transient discussion, were a light in the conversation. 

This winter, city staff and service providers will implement a sheltering model based on "Room In The Inn," a Nashville, Tennessee, initiative that finds homeless individuals shelter through area churches in winter.

In Nashville, 300 people checked into Room In The Inn, which is supported by nearly 200 congregations, in one night. Fort Collins would see smaller numbers, since the overall winter homeless population tallied in the annual counts hovers around 300 people. 

As of Tuesday evening, 25 churches and organizations have said they want to help with the local iteration of Room In The Inn. Coordinated preparation and training will begin in August. The program is expected to launch in November. 

Other initiatives spearheaded by Homeward 2020, Fort Collins' convening agency on reducing homelessness, include improved data collection, a renewed focus on prevention and shelter diversion, and the recently launched Outreach Fort Collins, which hopes to connect homeless and at-risk individuals with services and help ease tensions in Old Town.

"The ball is rolling," Homeward 2020 Director Vanessa Fenley said . "We just have to keep it rolling." 

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Transient vs. homeless

Transients, or travelers, are those who live a lifestyle of homelessness and move from community to community throughout the year. Fort Collins sees an increase in transients in summer. Homeless individuals are people lacking housing who consider Fort Collins their home and are more likely to seek local services. 

Follow Sarah Jane Kyle on Twitter @sarahjanekyle or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/reportersarahjane. Keep up with social issues in Northern Colorado by subscribing to the Life Connected newsletter.