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Advocates urge Columbia council to pursue housing-first, centralized services for unsheltered residents
Summary
Speakers called on the City of Columbia and Richland County to prioritize permanent housing and coordinated services over dispersal or criminalization, citing undercounts of those experiencing homelessness and pointing to successful programs in other cities.
Dozens of residents and advocates urged Columbia City Council on Aug. 19 to adopt a housing-first approach and a centralized services model for people experiencing homelessness, saying feeding programs alone do not address long-term needs.
"The most recent count identified over 1,400 people experiencing homelessness across the county, with at least 334 chronically unsheltered residents," said Mustafa Abdullah, a longtime homelessness advocate, adding that local advocates and officials believe the true figure may be closer to 2,000. "When we talk about banning Good Samaritan volunteers from feeding the homeless in downtown, we must remember, hunger does not disappear because we hide it."
Abdullah and other speakers pointed to national examples — Utah and Houston's housing-first initiatives, Austin's tiny-home community and Albuquerque's day-jobs program — as models Columbia could adapt, saying such programs reduce costs tied to emergency medical care, policing and incarceration while restoring stability.
"Housing and service cost less than constant emergency room visits, policing and incarceration," Abdullah said. "Columbia can be a model of dignity, compassion and real solution if we choose to be."
James Scott Jr., director of communications for the nonprofit Freedom, Righteousness and Equality (F.I.R.E.), described his own experience with homelessness and urged funding for housing and supportive services. "Instead of criminalizing the homeless, how is that going to make them not feel lonely? How is that going to not make them feel like they're forgotten?" Scott asked.
Mayor Daniel J. Rickerman and staff responded that the city has pursued several interventions, including rapid shelters and pallet homes, and said more centralized coordination among roughly 100 local providers is under development. Rickerman noted prior opportunities (a property off Faroe Road) that did not materialize and said the city will continue to pursue grant funding and partnerships.
The speakers asked the council to partner with Richland County, nonprofits and the business community to identify vacant land for housing projects, create navigation hubs with showers and case management, and expand job-training and addiction-treatment services. Councilmembers did not take formal action at the meeting; several said they expect working groups and grant-seeking to continue in the coming months.
