Proposed homeless ordinance 'puts progress at risk,' stakeholders group tells Tulsa mayor, councilors

The letter was written by Melanie Stewart, chairwoman of A Way Home for Tulsa, a consortium of private and public entities working to make homelessness in Tulsa rare and brief.

“Tulsa is not only a leader in our state but in our nation in our approaches to this issue,” Stewart wrote on behalf of the group. “This proposed change in ordinance puts that momentum and progress at risk.”

The letter lays out multiple reasons the proposed ordinance would be harmful to homeless people as well as costly for taxpayers. The group asks city leaders to consider alternative approaches outlined in the city’s own Affordable Housing Strategy.

“One example could be to create a civilian-led mental health and street response team that will complement the State’s efforts for a 988 crisis response system,” Stewart wrote. “Our coalition has outlined a proposal that would provide 24/7 mental health and street response coverage, based on similarly successful models around the country, which will be shared with the City Council.”

Bynum proposed the ordinance change in early May, saying it was a response to concerns he’s heard from community members and city councilors across the city.

“The concern was people feel powerless to address this, and even when I tell them all the great things that we’re funding and doing and trying to address, they feel powerless,” Bynum said. “The reality is, they shouldn’t, because they own these rights of way. … And ultimately through the 10 of us (mayor and nine city councilors), they determine how they get used in a lawful way.”

The proposed ordinance amendment would make it unlawful for a person to obstruct or to build and maintain a fire on a street, sidewalk, building entrance or exit, or any other public right of way unless licensed or permitted by the city.

Police would not be allowed to issue a citation unless the individual has been notified in advance that their actions are not allowed by law and yet continues to obstruct the right of way.

First-time offenders would be subject to a fine of no more than $100, excluding costs, fees and assessments, or jail time of no more than five days, or both. For subsequent convictions, the penalty would be a fine of no more than $200, excluding costs, fees and assessment, or jail time of no more than 10 days, or both.

Each day the violation is committed would constitute a separate offense.

In her letter to city leaders, Stewart describes the proposed ordinance as a “costly and risky nonsolution” and provides four reasons why. She says:

The ordinance would increase barriers to housing and critical services by potentially disqualifying people from housing options. At the same time, such an approach would “destroy the hard-earned trust that we have collectively built with Tulsans experiencing homelessness.”

The ordinance would disproportionately affect marginalized Tulsans, including those people with mental illnesses and disabilities.

The ordinance would end up costing taxpayers more money in law enforcement and jail costs than it would to fund the city’s strategic plan to address homelessness.

If adopted, the ordinance would likely expose the city to “costly legal action.”

“The U.S. Department of Justice issued an advisory in 2015 indicating laws that criminalize homelessness in communities that lack adequate housing and shelter space are unconstitutional,” Stewart wrote.

She begins the letter by noting that a wide range of Tulsans, from the philanthropic community to policy makers and the mayor himself, have worked together to make significant strides in addressing homelessness.

At the end of the letter, Stewart encourages the parties to continue collaborating to prevent evictions, improve service coordination and delivery, and build more affordable housing.

“Our coalition of partners and our local philanthropic community is ready and willing to support alternative approaches,” Stewart wrote. “We strongly urge you to work with us on proven solutions that will make Tulsa a safer and healthier community.”

The city has been grappling with a shortage of affordable housing, with officials before the pandemic identifying the need for approximately 4,000 units.

Since 2020, 2,915 people who were homeless have been moved into housing. As of April, 1,840 people in Tulsa were homeless, according to Housing Solutions.

The organizations listed on the letter are: Community Service Council; Tulsa Cares; Amy Santee, George Kaiser Family Foundation; City Lights Foundation of Oklahoma; Housing Solutions; CAP Tulsa; Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies; Iron Gate; Beheard Movement; Family & Children’s Services; Domestic Violence Intervention Services; Isaiah 58; Zarrow Family Foundations; Tulsa Day Center; Mental Health Association Oklahoma; Youth Services of Tulsa; Family Promise; and the Terence Crutcher Foundation.

Becky Gligo, executive director of Housing Solutions, told the Tulsa World on Wednesday that the proposed mobile units would be modeled after the CAHOOTS program in Eugene, Oregon.

“Let’s say you have somebody downtown and they are having a mental health crisis or they won’t leave a business, and they are not engaging with police or they’re not engaging with outreach workers,” Gligo said. “We would have licensed mental health professionals that could come do medical monitoring (and) help them get into a crisis center.”

Gligo said her caseworkers seldom encounter homeless people who refuse to move along when asked to do so — unless they are dealing with some kind of underlying issue.

“Unless there is something like substance abuse disorder, a mental health crisis or somebody who physically can’t move, when you ask people to move on, they move along,” she said.

Gligo noted that the state is already expanding its 988 mobile mental health program and that the proposal outlined in the letter calls for partnering with the state to provide those services within the city limits.

She did not have a specific price tag for the program but said the city of Eugene spends $1.8 million a year on its CAHOOTS program — Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets.

Bynum said he had not been able to give the proposal the time it deserves because he was focused on approving the city’s fiscal year 2023 budget, on which councilors were set to vote Wednesday.