Richardson staff, police outline engagement-first homeless response and seek new outreach partner

Richardson city staff and police on Tuesday described a multi-department effort to engage people experiencing homelessness, outlined recent contact and encampment data, and asked the City Council to help recruit new outreach partners to restore on-the-ground service connections.

Riley Thomas, a city staff presenter, told the council the city joined Housing Forward's All Neighbors Coalition in 2023 and also participates in the Collin County Homeless Coalition to coordinate data and best practices. "This group meets monthly to discuss regional challenges, exchange resources, and collaborate on proactive solutions," Thomas said. She said the city has formed an internal Unhoused Committee and distributed a staff community resource guide to help employees connect residents to services.

Chief Tittle described the Richardson Police Department's HELP team, launched in late 2022, as an engagement-first unit that also handles enforcement when necessary. "One of the key words in this particular title is the word engagement," Tittle said, adding the team runs warming and cooling center programs and works with other departments to address encampments and safety. He said roughly 60 businesses currently have a notarized criminal trespass affidavit on file to allow enforcement on private property when necessary.

Officer Jeremy Savage, who has conducted HELP team outreach, told council that early partnership with the nonprofit Our Calling allowed officers to bring services to people and, on several occasions, get people into detox or housing programs the same day. He said that partnership has since lapsed. "That is a shortcoming right now," Savage said. "Now we're essentially handing out resources that the individual has to go seek out, instead of bringing the resources to them."

Staff gave council recent summary figures: for 2023 the department logged about 256 homeless-related contacts and cleaned up about 32 encampments; the point-in-time (PIT) count then recorded seven people. In 2024 department contacts were lower (about 229), encampments fell to 13, and the PIT count rose to 13. Year-to-date figures presented to the council showed roughly 1,400 contacts (staff emphasized these are contacts, not unique individuals).

Council members asked about how officers connect people to services and whether the city is tracking outcomes. Officers said proactive outreach produces the best acceptance of services, while calls for service after disturbances are less likely to lead to voluntary referrals. Council members urged expanded partnerships with faith-based organizations, the Interfaith Alliance, and regional providers. Several members asked staff to pursue a new contracted partner that could resume ride-along outreach and on-site placement services similar to Our Calling.

Staff also briefed the council on expected added pressures from the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the North Texas region and noted planned coordination with DART Police and regional partners. Riley Thomas said the city will locally coordinate the January PIT count through Richardson Police and that the new community resource guide will be available to all departments.

No formal motions or votes were taken; staff requested council direction and support in identifying and funding a replacement outreach partner and in continuing regional collaboration.