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Wichita council reviews enforcement, outreach and housing efforts for unlawful camping
Summary
Councilors pressed city staff on enforcement of the revised unlawful-camping ordinance and on expanding outreach and shelter options, including a direct-to-housing pilot and Project 3 at Second Light to build permanent supportive housing. Officials emphasized legal limits on criminalizing homelessness and the need to pair enforcement with housing capacity and trust-building.
Wichita City Council members spent the largest portion of the meeting debating how the city is enforcing its revised unlawful-camping ordinance and how outreach, shelter capacity and housing-first pilot projects fit into that enforcement.
The discussion began with a request from the mayor for a status report on the ordinance adopted earlier this year and what constitutes a public-safety hazard on sidewalks. Sharon from the law department said the city must distinguish between ‘‘being’’ in public and ‘‘camping’’ with intent to sleep and that homelessness itself cannot be criminalized: "Homelessness as a status cannot be criminalized." She said the ordinance creates a two-tiered system that allows immediate cleanup only in narrowly defined dangerous or highly disruptive locations.
Captain Moses and police leadership described operational details and data. The police reported 184 tracked cases since April 1 and detailed homeless-outreach-team activity, noting 486 contacts and that officers and HOT generally achieve voluntary compliance rather than issuing citations. Captain Moses urged the council to consider resource allocation and the practical limits of enforcement.
Housing staff and partners outlined programs designed to reduce unsheltered homelessness alongside enforcement. Sally Stagg described a ‘‘direct-to-housing’’ pilot at a private camp on South Broadway (12 people, 8 households) that aims to house everyone involved by a set date, and Steve Burt said Project 3 at the Second Light campus plans a 75-unit development with 50 permanent supportive units and 25 non-congregate shelter units, with a hoped-for groundbreaking in December and a roughly one-year build.
Council members repeatedly balanced concerns about public safety and access to sidewalks with appeals for compassionate outreach. One councilor said large investments in Second Light ‘‘may not be effective if people distrust shelters’’; another called for stronger partnerships with nonprofit outreach groups so police are not the default first responders. City staff acknowledged that several funding sources (Project Hope, ERA) have ended or are ending and said some outreach positions were funded temporarily; sustaining outreach teams will require additional funding or reallocation.
Council agreed to schedule a public workshop in November for a formal status report from Second Light and related partners to clarify operational roles, potential metrics and the city’s expectations for service providers. The council also asked staff to return with clearer options for a dedicated outreach response (hours, cost and coordination) if funding were provided.
Next steps: a November workshop and continued coordination among police, housing staff, the homeless outreach team and community partners to pair enforcement actions with available housing and case management.
