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Residents and council debate data, opioid settlement and urgency as overdose numbers rise
Summary
Speakers at the District 2 town hall urged faster, coordinated action on overdoses and homelessness; Angel Tommy O'Sam said outreach connected 13 of 143 people to long‑term services and warned that criminalization and sweeps are not solutions.
Angel Tommy O'Sam, who operates a refuge for people experiencing domestic and gender‑based violence, said outreach teams’ recent data — 143 people contacted with 13 connecting to long‑term services (about 9 percent) — shows systemic gaps and should not be used to justify more coercive enforcement.
"Low engagement does not mean people are unwilling," Angel said. "It often means they've been failed too many times ... the system is too thin to hold them, too slow to respond, too removed from their lived realities." Angel urged the council not to rely on criminalization, forced treatment or sweeps as solutions.
Wendy Fishburne and other residents called for treating the overdose surge as a crisis and accelerating stabilization and treatment capacity. Fishburne said planned stabilization expansions for 2026 are inadequate given current deaths and urged immediate, coordinated action.
Council members described multiple ongoing efforts and funding sources. One council member listed tools under discussion: a "Home Starts Here" ordinance, stabilization (bridging) facilities and use of opioid settlement dollars. The council member said the county is expanding a stabilization center and that sobering beds and STARS‑related facilities are part of regional efforts, but that the city still lacks sufficient capacity.
Another council member urged a stronger focus on measurable outcomes and data‑driven spending, warning that current allocations (including opioid settlement and ARPA dollars) may be dispersed across many programs without producing exits from homelessness or sustained treatment outcomes.
No council vote or new funding allocation was made at the town hall; members agreed follow‑up coordination, clearer metrics and faster regional collaboration are needed. Speakers requested the council report back on how current and planned funding streams — opioid settlement dollars, county stabilization expansions, and other programs — connect to measurable outcomes for treatment, housing exits and overdose prevention.
