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Local advocate urges Faribault City Council to form regional task force on homelessness
Summary
Dr. Martha Brown told the Faribault City Council that banning encampments does not solve homelessness and proposed a regional task force including people with lived experience to explore humane alternatives; staff said they will circulate her materials and discuss them at an upcoming work session.
At the July 8, 2025 Faribault City Council meeting, Dr. Martha Brown urged the council to pursue humane alternatives to routine encampment cleanups and proposed forming a regional task force to develop solutions.
"Unhoused people are people and they're human beings worthy of dignity and respect," Dr. Brown told the council during the public comment period, saying enforcement alone ‘‘does not solve the problem of homelessness’’ and citing causes such as job loss, evictions, substance use and mental-health challenges.
Brown recommended a task force made up of current and former unhoused people, local service providers, government agencies and interested residents to evaluate alternatives to encampment cleanups and present options to the council. She said she would share research and resource materials with staff for distribution.
Brown also cited the National Alliance to End Homelessness, noting that ‘‘government should not criminalize people for just being homeless’’ and urging the council to consider that guidance when shaping local responses.
Mayor Spooner and staff thanked Brown and said her materials would be shared by staff (Heather) and discussed at an upcoming work session. The exchange ended with the mayor noting council and staff will review the materials before a future meeting.
The council took no formal action on Brown’s proposal during the meeting; staff indicated the topic would be placed on a future work session agenda for further discussion.
