Des Moines staff, Primary Healthcare propose expanded street outreach and tighten camping rules; council to consider contract Monday

Shelby Ridley, director of programs at Primary Healthcare, told a Des Moines council workshop that the nonprofit seeks to expand street outreach to provide more consistent engagement with people living unsheltered and to improve connections to shelter and services.

"We currently have 1 FTE at this point, and this proposal would expand to 4 FTEs," Ridley said, describing a plan to add three outreach workers who would operate in pairs and cover daytime and evening shifts. PHC’s model emphasizes Housing First, progressive engagement and harm reduction; Ridley said the nonprofit does not require sobriety or appointments and focuses on building trust with clients.

Ridley also warned of limited housing supply: "The waiting list currently has at least 750 people on that waiting list," she said, noting permanent supportive housing openings are rare and staff must often find a match within three days of an opening.

City Manager Scott said the city intends to bring a contract with Primary Healthcare to the council meeting on Monday that would fund outreach for an initial two-year pilot. "The proposed contract with Primary Healthcare on Monday's agenda is for roughly $300,000," Scott said, adding that about $250,000 in private funding has been identified and the city expects to test the model over two years.

Staff framed outreach as the first response to complaints and emphasized coordination with existing providers. Scott said the outreach workers would be the initial contact on locations where complaints arise, with the goal of connecting people to shelter or other safer arrangements before enforcement. The outreach scope includes referrals to centralized intake, transportation support (vehicles), basic supplies and linkages to partners such as shelters, mobile crisis and public health programs.

The workshop also covered proposed ordinance changes staff will present for council action: shortening the encampment-cleanup notice period (from 10 days to 3 days) and narrowing the sleeping prohibition so it no longer applies broadly in public rights-of-way but remains in place for unsafe locations such as sidewalks, streets, driveways and alleys. Scott said the city is also lowering fines from $50 to $15 and adding an explicit exclusion for minors.

Council members asked how enforcement would work and whether noncompliance could result in arrest. One council member said, "People can be arrested. And this is criminal, not civil," and Scott confirmed enforcement for noncompliance can be criminal but said police involvement would be a last resort after outreach and attempts at compliance.

Staff outlined seven initiatives intended to reduce barriers to shelter and housing: (1) work with shelter operators to reduce barriers such as transportation and pets, (2) partner with ARL for animal care tied to shelter entry, (3) secure storage options for belongings and a city-managed retrieval process for items recovered from encampments, (4) provide transportation resources (vehicles) for outreach and client movement, (5) expand public restroom availability and monitor utilization, (6) formalize outreach as the first point of contact on complaints, and (7) hire part-time hearing officers to expedite appeals and reduce delays in clean-ups.

Scott said staff will report back to council on utilization and recommended monthly reports on many elements of the initiative. He also noted the city is exploring additional housing tools, including incentives for landlords, a land trust to preserve affordability at low AMI levels and potential sites for higher-capacity shelter options.

The council did not take a final vote at the workshop; Scott said authorization of the contract with Primary Healthcare will be on the council meeting agenda on Monday and that staff will provide a public release with additional private-funding details.