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Unhoused resident urges council to address criminalization, HUD funding and employment barriers
Summary
An unhoused Garland resident urged the council to form a pilot committee to address alleged discriminatory enforcement against people experiencing homelessness and gaps in local services funded by HUD, and asked the council to engage with affected residents.
Michael Cooley, who identified himself as an unhoused Garland resident, urged the council to address what he described as discriminatory policing and gaps in services for people without housing.
Cooley told council he has raised funding and program concerns previously and said a Garland Police Department liaison writes citations in ways that ignore required due‑process steps for unhoused people; he asked the council to meet individually with unhoused residents, form a pilot committee, and examine how HUD‑related funds are being used. "The criminalization of the unhoused has showed this discriminatory face in Garland, Texas," he said, and he argued that insufficient shelter, transitional housing and public housing capacity frustrates efforts to use HUD dollars effectively.
Cooley asked that the council consider pathways to employment for unhoused residents and to convene stakeholders to identify service gaps and remedies. Council did not take action on the requests during the meeting; public comment items are subject to Texas Open Meetings Act limits on council discussion.
