City uses systematic approach to improve health and safety downtown

By Press release submission

Dec 16, 2022

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – At today’s Public Safety Committee, City administrators outlined the City’s efforts in investing in facilities and services to address housing instability, as well as its approach to enforcement of existing ordinances that address recent comments about health and safety in downtown Grand Rapids and its neighborhoods. The staff committed to monitoring the focused approach on these initiatives as well as to future engagements with the City Commission and Public Safety Committee around what additional investments and actions may be needed to accomplish lasting change.

The measures outlined by Deputy City Manager Kate Berens, Police Chief Eric Winstrom and Fire Chief John Lehman use city personnel, the Homeless Outreach Team (HOT), mental health providers and many provisions of the current City Code to address recent concerns. With the weather turning colder, the policy uses a systematic approach to improve the health of the unhoused by encouraging entrance into temporary shelter, permanent stable housing and access to supportive services.

The City’s “Safe Community” strategic priority is to make sure all people feel safe and are safe at all times throughout our community. That strategy continues being implemented across the community and includes:

° Continued funding for homeless service and shelter providers.

° Allocating funding and support for the Affordable Housing Fund.

° Participation in the Continuum of Care, Essential Needs Task Force, Housing Kent and the Housing Stability Alliance and collective community-wide coordination and commitment for ending homelessness.

° Partnership with Network180 and other social service providers to ensure we address mental and behavioral health issues for the unhoused community.

° Continuation of the Homeless Outreach Team (HOT), first created in 2020.

° Partnership with Network180 for dedicated Mobile Crisis Response (co-response team) services to support the Police Department in responding to mental health calls.

° Enhanced focus on downtown public health issues, with the City’s Public Works Department and Homeless Outreach Team partnering to improve responsiveness to sanitation issues.

° Partnership with Mel Trotter Ministries to operate a storage program to reduce the accumulation of personal belongings outdoors.

° Partnership with Downtown Grand Rapids Incorporated (DGRI) and others to make environmental design changes in public spaces to increase lighting, visibility and feeling of safety.

° Partnership with DGRI and independent City efforts to increase private security in and around Monroe Center and downtown parks during key events and times of the year.

° Partnership with DGRI led to the installation of a stand-alone, 24/7, year-round public restroom at Division and Weston.

° Improvements in Heartside Park that will include year-round public restroom facilities and recently approved upgrades to Veteran’s Park historic building that will include public restrooms.

° Funding for, and deployment of, public safety camera trailers at key times, locations and events.

In recent months, reports of problematic situations and behaviors downtown have continued with calls for additional City response. In addition, general concerns on behalf of unhoused persons have included exposure to cold weather and other hazards, as well as unmet mental and behavioral health needs. Specific behavioral concerns related to downtown safety that have been expressed to the City Commission include various health and sanitation issues, aggressive threatening behavior, sleeping in public and private places, public intoxication, assault, trespassing and littering.

After hearing directly from the public, City Commission indicated an overwhelming desire to utilize existing codes and ordinances to address recent concerns instead of creating new ordinance provisions to prohibit panhandling and siting and lying in public spaces. Following up, City Manager Mark Washington has directed City staff to use existing ordinances and resources, consistent with applicable state and federal statutes and case law, to respond, monitor, de-escalate, and – where necessary – take other enforcement actions against violations that threaten public health and safety.

“During the pandemic, the City deprioritized non-violent misdemeanor offenses to reduce COVID exposures which coincided with a higher demand for critical resources that delayed response to some of the issues being identified,” Washington said. “We are still deprioritizing non-violent offenses but now are prepared to resume more normal operations and redeploy our resources to address the more violent and criminal acts in key locations throughout the city. But let me be clear, we will not arrest our way out of homelessness and need more holistic approaches.”

Washington said more permanent supportive affordable housing supply is the key to resolving this issue.

“We have many emergency overnight shelters with approximately 1,000 beds but during the day many of those in shelters have limited places to go,” he said. “We need to rethink approaches and how we shelter individuals especially in cold weather months while seeking low barrier solutions.

Washington expressed that, while there are a number of initiatives working in the community around these issues, “It is time to assess the progress made and identify ways to increase collaboration and effectiveness. As a first step towards this, I plan to have City staff return to the City Commission and the Public Safety Committee in the new year with an overview of current communitywide initiatives intended to improve outcomes for people that are unhoused, including plans for public engagement to address many of these housing, health and safety issues. I am also encouraged by the Affordable Housing Fund Board’s recent decision to launch a request for proposal process in the first quarter of 2023 that will award up to $6 million to support various affordable housing projects.”