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Kenosha residents press council for more shelter capacity, tenant protections and road safety
Summary
During public comment Jan. 5 residents urged the council to expand shelter capacity and address predatory landlord practices; another speaker described repeated crashes and unsafe pedestrian conditions on the 60th Street corridor and asked the council for a transportation study.
Marita Huff (7939 34th Avenue) told the council the Shalom Center’s reported capacity (60–80 people depending on staffing) does not meet local needs and said she counted at least 61 people living outside during a recent holiday outreach. Huff asked the council to support small housing options, increase HUD funding uses for non‑single‑family housing, and consider zoning changes to allow more low‑income units.
Huff also described a pilot program that placed a porta‑potty at an outreach center and said the pilot was working; she asked the council to consider similar dignity measures downtown. “We need more low income housing. We need HUD money used for things besides single family homes,” she said.
On transportation, Josh Maglissing (1917 60th Street) asked the council to review conditions along the 60th Street corridor after several accidents near his home. Maglissing said missing crosswalks, bus stop placements and a lack of striping create safety and accessibility problems, particularly for elderly residents and people with disabilities, and urged the Transportation Commission or council to commission a study.
The council did not adopt policy changes at the Jan. 5 meeting; speakers asked staff and aldermen to pursue zoning, shelter capacity and streetscape reviews in subsequent committee work.
