Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Homelessness topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council approves $20 million appropriation to support homelessness initiatives, including Streets to Home phase two
Summary
The council approved Proposal 2-73, a $20 million supplementary appropriation that councilors and public commenters said will fund homelessness interventions including the Streets to Home second phase and pedestrian-safety funding.
The Indianapolis City-County Council on Oct. 6 approved Proposal 2-73, an additional appropriation of $20,000,000 for the Department of Metropolitan Development to support homelessness initiatives, including funding described as part of the second phase of the Streets to Home program. The motion carried, 24 yays and 1 abstention.
Councilors who spoke in favor cited the funding's potential to move chronically unhoused residents into permanent housing and to support related services. During floor remarks, a councilor noted that about $5,900,000 of the allocation would support the Streets to Home second initiative and said "that portion about 5,900,000.0 will certainly be a good start in terms of the second part of that initiative to make sure, folks who are homeless get permanent housing. So I encourage adoption tonight." (speaker remarks in the public record.)
Public comment included students and community-service providers who urged passage. Ten-year-old Monroe Burnley said, "I support proposal 2 73 because every person deserves a safe place to stay." Fifteen-year-old Harmony Street, a participant in Girl Talk Inc. and Empower Her Academy, described chronic homelessness and said the proposal helps address the issue. Corbin Havener, a volunteer with Indie Action Coalition, highlighted gaps for chronically homeless youth, particularly 16-to-17-year-olds without guardianship who cannot self-enroll in school, calling it a "massive gap" in state emancipation rules.
Service providers also testified. Dominique Carris, founder of KBDB Inc. and operator of a reentry sober-living home, said a grant shortfall left eight residents at risk of being returned to the streets and urged support for Proposal 2-73. Yvette Markey, founder of InTouch Outreach Resource Center, described working "every day directly in the streets of Marion County" and said the organization serves unsheltered individuals and families; she voiced support for the appropriation.
Councilors thanked community members and several emphasized the need for a sustained budget process that funds homelessness intervention and pedestrian safety. The motion before the council was the appropriation ordinance Proposal 2-73; the clerk recorded the vote as 24 yays and 1 abstention, with the abstention noted as coming from the presiding officer because a portion of the work under the appropriation involves the officer's employer (recorded on the floor).
The appropriation will be administered by the Department of Metropolitan Development and the council recorded that a portion of the funds would be directed to Streets to Home Phase 2 and at least $1,000,000 would be devoted to pedestrian safety, according to floor remarks.
