Q&A
Addressing shelter saturation in certain areas
2:36:58
·
58 sec
Council Member Stevens raises concerns about the concentration of shelters in certain areas and inquires about DHS's approach to this issue. Commissioner Park confirms that shelter saturation is a factor in site selection.
- DHS does consider the existing concentration of shelters when reviewing proposed sites
- The Council Member suggests creating 'frozen zones' in areas with high shelter saturation
- There's a recognition that providers may not always consider the broader landscape of shelter distribution when proposing sites
- The Council Member and Commissioner agree to collaborate on addressing this issue in future RFPs
Althea V. Stevens
2:36:58
too Is it ever because this this location has so many shelters in
Molly Wasow Park
2:37:02
the area?
2:37:03
Yes.
Althea V. Stevens
2:37:03
Absolutely.
2:37:03
How often does that happen?
Molly Wasow Park
2:37:05
More often than you would think.
2:37:07
Interesting.
2:37:07
Because it
Diana I. Ayala
2:37:07
doesn't happen
Althea V. Stevens
2:37:08
so much in my district, but you've been nice to me, so I'm not gonna be mean today.
2:37:14
But I think that that's something that we we definitely been thinking about in the process of, like, are there areas we should just, like, say, this is a frozen zone for right now because it's so saturated, and how do we move forward?
2:37:24
Because I think even with with providers, if they are, like, oh, we need to find the space, they're just gonna go out.
2:37:30
And they're they're not looking to think, like, oh, is there another shelter down the block, or is there one in the area?
2:37:35
Because, like, that's not their landscape.
2:37:37
They're gonna real estate is ridiculous in the city right now.
2:37:41
And so, you know, it also puts them in a position where they're not able to, like, provide.
2:37:47
And so I think we need to think about what does that look like, you know, for the next RFPs that are coming up.
Molly Wasow Park
2:37:51
Happy to collaborate on that.
2:37:53
Absolutely.
Althea V. Stevens
2:37:53
So we'll definitely talk soon.
2:37:54
Thank you.
Gale A. Brewer
2:37:55
Council member Banks.
Chris Banks
2:37:56
Thank you, madam chair.
