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Tucson increases encampment outreach, opens shelters and coordinates cross‑jurisdiction response
Summary
City staff reported 390 encampment cases created in the prior 60 days and described a tiered assessment and multiagency outreach model, long‑running decommissioning work at Hundred Acre Woods and Santa Rita Park closures, and temporary shelter placements including hotels and new congregate shelters.
City staff told the Tucson City Council on Tuesday that encampment response and unsheltered homelessness services continue to expand, with a structured triage process, targeted site actions and new temporary shelter capacity.
Interim Multi‑Agency Resource Coordinator Justin Hamilton and program manager Brandy Champion summarized recent activity: the city had created 390 encampment cases in the previous 60 days with staffing focused in Wards 3 and 6, and staff averaged roughly 64 cases per month before a spike to about 187 per month beginning January 2025 — a change the team attributed in part to greater public awareness of the city’s reporting tool.
Hamilton described a formal triage system: encampments are assessed and graded by tier for action; about one‑third of cases require immediate removal because of public safety or environmental risks — for instance encampments located near schools, residential fences, tunnels or busy rights‑of‑way. City‑led site updates included an 18‑month decommissioning effort at Hundred Acre Woods (Zone 1 and 2 decommissioned; Zone 3 in process, with mountain bike park planning underway) and a Santa Rita Park outreach and closure process that involved multiple agencies and is expected to take 18–24 months to complete.
Staff outlined multiagency operations along the Santa Cruz river corridor and the Chuck Huckleberry Loop to target open‑air drug use and public safety concerns, combining law enforcement, environmental services, Pima County outreach and other partner services. Hamilton said these coordinated efforts were a possible model for other hotspots.
Champion described shelter placements and year‑round housing first capacity: temporary respite shelters and hotels are in use, with the Quality Inn serving as an operation for Operation Heat Relief and the Wildcat Inn hosting families and individuals; Amplify Housing Resource Center opened in March 2025 and was serving around 42 clients in concentrated outreach for Ward 3. Champion highlighted success stories including reuniting families and placing people with pets.
Staff also described cooling center coordination with Pima County for the summer season and said outreach staff would be deployed to distribute heat‑relief kits and conduct targeted engagement.
Ending: Council thanked the staff and asked for continued updates; the city will continue decommissioning hotspot encampments with multiagency outreach and maintain shelter and cooling capacity during the summer months.
