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Residents urge reinstate homeless task force, propose mitigation site
Summary
Multiple residents told the Shelton City Council that the city should reinstate its homeless task force and plan a supervised mitigation site to reduce harms, connect people to services and improve public safety and quality of life in downtown areas.
Several Shelton residents used the council’s public-comment period on March 18 to urge the city to reinstate a homeless task force and plan a formal mitigation site to provide sanitary shelter, services and case management for people experiencing homelessness.
The callers described visible encampments and public-health concerns downtown and urged a coordinated, evidence-based response. “Reinstating the homeless task force is a critical first step,” resident Alicia Otto told the council, saying the task force previously united nonprofits, faith groups, housing authorities and health providers to pursue longer-term solutions. Otto asked the city to “plan a homeless mitigation site” to provide “a safe sanitary space” linked to services.
Tanner Ophodel, who said he works for the city utilities department, described ongoing trash and spread of camps and said a single mitigation location could help contain and manage the problem rather than let it disperse. “We need a place for them to be in one spot where we can maintain the problem rather than let it spread,” Ophodel said.
Dave Redfin referenced the “Housing First” model and cited Washington State Health Care Authority data he summarized from mid-2024 showing program enrollment and types of services delivered. Redfin said the model combines housing with case management and reduces emergency calls and hospital use.
Downtown business owner Susan Pollard said recent incidents—including people camping near storefronts, public urination and fence damage—are harming customer perceptions and business operations. Pollard said she had contacted nonemergency police and code enforcement multiple times in recent weeks and that, in her view, services were currently limited at the nearby recovery cafe.
Dean Jewett, a longtime community member, spoke in support of residents advocating for action and encouraged broader community involvement to address homelessness.
None of the speakers asked the council to adopt a specific ordinance at the March 18 meeting; their remarks asked council to reinstate the task force and to move forward with planning for a mitigation site. The meeting record shows no vote or directive at that time to authorize a mitigation site or to allocate funding. Council members did not take formal action on these requests during the session.
The public-record comments will be part of the council’s ongoing policy discussions; council staff listed a police-department report and other items on the study-session agenda for the following week, but no date for action on a task force or mitigation site was set during the March 18 meeting.
