ST. LOUIS — The city may put one or more “intentional encampments†for homeless people outside vacant schools, an aide to Mayor Tishaura O. Jones told an aldermanic panel Thursday night.
Nahuel Fefer, Jones’ director of policy and development, said tents could be set up in schoolyards, while gyms in the old school buildings could be used to serve food, clean laundry and provide other services.
Fefer was asked about the encampments during a hearing on a plan for spending $80 million in federal pandemic aid submitted by Jones last week to the Board of Aldermen.
The plan includes $2 million for such sites, which would be set up for homeless people who won’t go to traditional shelters. Fefer said the use of empty schools is among various models being considered.
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More than a dozen locations are under consideration, Fefer said, and the city will contact residents of affected neighborhoods and their aldermen before any decision is made.
“We are going to have encampments one way or another,†Fefer told the Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee. “It’s been a reality in our city for a long time.†At issue, he said, is how the city manages that situation.
Fefer said the encampments potentially would be set up by the city and overseen by nonprofit organizations. Referrals to health and other services would be provided and the sites would have fencing and privacy screens, he said.
Jones’ plan also includes $8 million for more traditional shelters, $2 million for additional “tiny home†developments and millions more for other homeless services.
Committee chairman Jeffrey Boyd, 22nd Ward, who asked about the encampments, complained that St. Louis County hasn’t done enough to deal with the region’s homeless problem and urged the mayor to get County Executive Sam Page to do more.
“Why should we be the only government entity within this region that is laser focused on homelessness?†Boyd asked.
The encampments were discussed during a briefing from aides to the mayor on the overall spending program’s details.
Lindsey Noblot, who works at an early childhood center, urged the panel to endorse Jones’ proposal, which was based on ideas developed by an advisory committee of more than 30 people that held hearings and got other public input.
Jones’ plan “has everything we need to move forward,†Noblot said.
But Boyd and Aldermanic President Lewis Reed, who is sponsoring a bill to determine how the money is spent, pointed out that the spending issue is now before the city’s legislative body for review and possible changes or additions.
Earlier Thursday, Nick Dunne, a Jones spokesman, said the extension Thursday of a until July 31 hasn’t changed the need to quickly approve the $80 million proposal.
But Mary Goodman, legislative director for Reed, said the 30-day delay of the eviction moratorium underscores Reed’s point that there’s no need for the board to act by the end of the month as Jones has wanted.The mayor’s proposal also includes $12.44 million to help residents pay rent and utility bills and $2.5 million for mortgage payments for others.
Another component calls for $5 million in one-time targeted cash payments of $350 to $500 to individuals. The mayor has yet to say how she wants people selected for those amounts.
In addition, $6.75 million would go to public health initiatives such as mobile COVID vaccination clinics and canvassing and other efforts to boost the city’s lagging vaccination rate.
And there is money to expand city violence prevention programs in high-crime neighborhoods and to boost youth job and recreation initiatives.Â
Bush backs plan
Also Thursday, U.S. Rep. Cori Bush, D-St. Louis, endorsed Jones' plan and sent letters to aldermen urging them to back it.
"The need to quickly get relief into the hands of St. Louisans cannot be overstated," Bush said in the letter.
Earlier Thursday, another aldermanic committee voted to go along with Reed’s plan to let the $1.15-billion city budget proposed by the city’s top fiscal body, the Board of Estimate and Apportionment, go into effect next Thursday without any changes.
The committee sent the bill to the full Board of Aldermen with a “do not pass†recommendation.
Reed says aldermen could propose changes in the budget in a supplemental appropriations bill to be introduced next month. One possibility is an effort to set aside additional money for police overtime.