Ypsilanti human relations commission presses city for permanent shelter plan, funding review and town hall on housing

The Ypsilanti Human Relations Commission voted Thursday to ask the city attorney for legal guidance and to request information from the city manager on options for a permanent shelter, use of housing-related funds and operation of warming-center services after a lengthy discussion about homelessness, the Freight House warming center and a planned housing town hall.

Commissioners said local warming-center capacity, gaps in daily coverage and a lack of a durable shelter arrangement have left people experiencing homelessness in recurring precarity. Commissioner comments and public testimony pointed to gaps in services and to limited funding streams that commissioners said the commission should explore with city counsel and administration.

The commission’s action came after public comment from Jessica Kelly, who said her adult son has been jailed while living with chronic mental illness and homelessness. “He’s in a 6 by 6 foot cell, barred door, and he has no privileges,” Kelly told commissioners during the meeting. Commissioners cited her testimony when discussing immediate needs for respite spaces and…