Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing And Homelessness topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident urges opening vacant apartments to house people experiencing homelessness
Summary
At the Feb. 23 meeting, resident Maggie Wilmarina asked Kirksville officials to open nearby vacant apartments to provide housing and job support for people experiencing homelessness, arguing it would generate city revenue and reduce local drug activity; the request was recorded during public comment and drew no formal action at the meeting.
Maggie Wilmarina, a resident who identified herself during Tuesday’s citizens participation period, urged Kirksville officials to consider opening vacant apartments near the police station as temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness.
"We could open it up, help the homeless, and people that got conned out of the money... We could really help people out," Wilmarina said. She argued opening units would let residents obtain employment and generate revenue for city services while also reducing local drug activity, according to the meeting transcript.
The comment was made during the public-comment portion of the meeting; no staff commitment or council action to pursue Wilmarina’s specific proposal was recorded in the council’s proceedings that evening. City staff and council members did discuss other agenda items and then voted to enter executive session for legal and real-estate matters.
Public comments do not constitute formal city policy; any proposal to use city-owned or privately held vacant units for housing would require staff study, legal review and likely council action.
This item was recorded in the council transcript during the citizens participation segment of the Feb. 23 meeting.
