State outlines 30‑60‑90 sprint to address Morristown homelessness; council urges county coordination

Michael Callahan, director of the Office of Homelessness Prevention at the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, told the Morristown Town Council on March 11 that the state will deploy additional resources and pursue a focused 30‑60‑90‑day effort to reduce unsheltered homelessness in the town.

“We will be deploying additional state resources to help resolve some of the ongoing issues,” Callahan said, adding that the effort will include outreach workers, emergency sheltering and permanent housing tied to supportive case management. “One of the things as we work towards reducing unsheltered homelessness in Morristown… is that really working towards and leveraging some of the other models and successes that we've had throughout the state in the past 3 years.”

Callahan said the state will work with municipal leaders on a sprint that includes diversion at municipal court, 24‑hour street outreach workers to partner with police, and additional emergency and permanent shelter capacity linked to case management.

Council members welcomed the state engagement but emphasized the need for county‑level coordination. A council member who has worked with county systems said the appropriate locus for coordinating homeless services and funding is the county. “It should be on the county budget,” that speaker said, stressing centralization to reduce duplication and administrative overhead.

Council members also said they withdrew a proposed ordinance limiting camping after concerns that enforcement without available services would be inappropriate. Several members asked that any enforcement or camping limits be paired with clear access to services, diversion pathways and shelter capacity.

The council acknowledged the police department’s role in pairing enforcement with outreach. The administration singled out Lieutenant Oakley and the police department for work already underway with the county and nonprofits.

Callahan said the state will not turn police into social workers but will add outreach staff so officers are partners rather than the sole responders to homelessness. He said the state has handled larger encampment responses elsewhere and will bring lessons learned to Morristown’s effort.

Ending

Council members said they look forward to follow‑up from the administration and the state and urged continued coordination with Morris County and the nonprofit continuum of care. Callahan and town officials agreed to continue the work and provide more detailed plans in the weeks ahead.