Downtown nonprofit and backers urge council to reject moratorium on new homeless services

Third Place QC founders and local funders urged the Rock Island City Council to reject a proposed moratorium on new services for people experiencing homelessness and allow the nonprofit to open a downtown drop-in center as planned.

Supporters, including Gary Rowe of the Rock Island Community Foundation and Chloe Miller, cofounder of Third Place QC, told the council the organization has a concrete plan to offer daytime respite, laundry, device charging, storage and referrals for health and social services and that delaying approval would deny immediate help to unhoused residents. “Reject this moratorium. Work with us. Let's build solutions together,” Miller said.

The comments came during the public comment period and were not attached to a formal council vote in the meeting record. Gary Rowe described Third Place QC as offering services not available elsewhere and said the group had coordinated with existing providers to avoid duplication. Chloe Miller said the moratorium appeared to be sudden, lacking public notice and community engagement, and argued that it would prevent a program she described as “trained” and “prepared” from opening on its planned timeline.

Speakers pressed the council to balance downtown business concerns with the needs of unhoused residents, and Rowe and others said Third Place QC’s founders have experience working with Humility Homes and other local providers. Council members said they had received outreach from both supporters and downtown business interests; no formal action on a moratorium was recorded during the meeting.

Ending: The transcript records multiple public commenters urging the council to either waive or not enact a moratorium and to permit Third Place QC to proceed; the council did not vote on a moratorium during this session and no ordinance or motion related to the moratorium appears in the meeting minutes provided.