Mayor's Commission on Homelessness
As many of you know, I have been privileged to serve as chair of the Mayor’s Commission on Homelessness over these last several months. I am grateful for the consistent support and assistance, knowledge and experience of my co-chair Debra Hensley, who chaired the original Mayor’s Commission on Homelessness in 1999. My thanks also to members of the Steering Committee and all Commission members for their significant efforts to understand the problems facing the homeless in Lexington and reach agreements about possible solutions, and to staff for their crucial support for all aspects of the work
Mayor Gray created the Commission in response to a complex set of issues that impact people without adequate shelter and that impact the community as a whole. The Commission was composed of 33 members who represented a broad cross-section of the community and included homeless service providers, advocates, people who have experienced homelessness, community activists, education and business leaders, and government officials. We met from August to January and had 9 Commission meetings, 12 Steering Committee meetings, and 2 public meetings. The Commission reviewed the full range of materials and experiences related to homelessness and issued a report including 48 recommendations.
Three major recommendations are comprehensive and foundational. They are: 1) create a consistent, dependable source of revenue to ensure adequate funding; 2) create an office for coordination; and 3) create more affordable housing units. The highest priority recommendations for specific actions are: 1) institute a “Housing First” approach and program for the mentally ill and chronically homeless; 2) support the creation of a mental health court;3) develop a program of street outreach for the chronically homeless; 4) increase employment support; and 5) increase case management. You can learn more about the Commission and read the final draft of the report (final except for fine editing and formatting) here.
The Commission presented its recommendations at the Council work session on January 29, 2013 which you can watch here. It also presented its proposed ordinance for an affordable housing trust fund to the Budget and Finance Committee on February 19, 2013 which you can watch here. My statement to the Budget and Finance Committee is below.
At the February Budget and Finance meeting the Mayor announced that he would be proposing funding in the upcoming budget to provide for coordinating services to begin implementation of the recommendations in the Commission Report. He also proposed committing additional resources to complete a more detailed plan prior to addressing the question of the full funding proposed.
While the Commission is not currently meeting, it will not be disbanded until a structure is in place to implement the Commission recommendations, and to provide assistance and guidance as appropriate during the transition.
I am grateful for this experience of working with so many dedicated members of our community on this difficult set of issues. and look forward to working on these issues in the future. I will be sharing some of what I learned about homelessness in the coming weeks.
Remarks at the February Budget and Finance Committee meeting regarding recommendations from the Mayor’s Commission on Homelessness
I would like to provide an update on where I think we stand regarding the specific proposal before the committee, which is an ordinance that would create an Affordable Housing Trust Fund and increase by 1% the fee presently imposed on a range of insurance premiums.
I have discussed this issue with all council members and with the administration, and the clear message I get has three parts.
First, there is appreciation for the work of the commission and a clear recognition of the need that exists in our community to provide more affordable housing units and more efficient and effective support for those who, for a range of reasons, find themselves homeless in our community.
Second, there is a significant level of commitment to create the structures and find the resources to address this set of issues.
Third, there is not adequate support at this time for the specific path forward contained in the present proposed ordinance. Those with reservations would like to see a detailed plan that provides more specific information about how the Trust Fund would be structured, how recommendations would be implemented, and how the resources would be allocated. Some believe that there may be alternative sources for funding the Trust Fund.
In a moment I will ask Mayor Gray to provide information about the ways the administration intends to move forward to develop the plan that will then allow for direct consideration of the funding mechanism needed, and to begin implementation of the recommendations contained in the commission report.
I had intended to make a motion to move the proposed ordinance onto the council docket. I have become convinced that doing so without addressing the concerns that have been expressed, and without, as a consequence, adequate votes to win approval from council, would be counter-productive. But I know that many people have come today to voice their views about the proposed ordinance, and I believe that we need to hear them as part of our education on this issue. We need to hear from members of this committee as well.
I am asking that the proposed ordinance be kept in committee while additional work goes forward, and that it be kept in committee until such time as it either makes sense to move the proposed ordinance forward to council in its present form, or until such time as there is an alternative proposal to establish the Trust Fund that is true to and honors the full intent of the current proposal.
With the permission of the chair and the committee, I would now like to ask Mayor Gray to come to the podium and outline the administration plans for ensuring that we continue to move forward toward the goal of an Affordable Housing Trust Fund, and that we then hear from the members of the public who have signed up to speak on this issue.
