Inklings of a Pushback and the View from Anchorage

At the latest monthly Community Homelessness Advisory Board (CHAB) meeting, a welcome alternate participant was councilman Devon Reese who pushed back on certain shortcomings on how we help the unhoused, including the gaping lack of official cooling centers when we face heatwaves, such as right now.

We reported on the meeting extensively here. The issue came about partly as spraying was being scheduled at the Nevada Cares Campus, on a very hot day, for extensive hours. After a social media uproar from advocates and questions during the CHAB meeting, the duration of the spraying was noticeably reduced in length of time, and proceeded without having to evacuate the entire compound. On that day, we accompanied a first time volunteer whose 100 cold waters in the back of his car were handed out in just a few minutes right outside the campus. He vowed to go back every day with more bottles. People blessed him and shared stories as he walked around.

During the CHAB meeting, Reese also asked about a more detailed financial breakdown for the Nevada Cares Campus so far, saying $8 million was spent on land, $7 million was spent on the compound’s construction and nearly $2 million on operating expenses.  At the end of the meeting, it was said that with Washoe County soon taking over leadership on services, this would free up Reno in using federal grants and aid to find ways to create desperately needed local accessible and affordable housing. So far, it was said, that money has gone almost entirely to shelter operator Volunteers of America.

Some common sense signals are being given, but where is the urgent implementation? Reese has previously indicated an interest in looking into the possibility of a local “Right to Rest Act,” but no progress has been publicly made. For example this is what a bill proposed but rejected in Colorado included: basic rights for persons experiencing homelessness, including, but not limited to, the right to use and move freely in public spaces, to rest in public spaces, to eat or accept food in any public space where food is not prohibited, to occupy a legally parked vehicle, and to have a reasonable expectation of privacy of one's property. 

Meanwhile, sweeps here are ongoing. This morning, it was NDOT carting off people’s possessions, in a hidden spot behind the campus, along the highway. A notice was given but since this is an NDOT sweep, the belongings are being trashed and not stored.

A journalist from the Anchorage Daily News had called us for background information on the Nevada Cares campus, and came up with this report as officials from the Alaska city think through their own plan, and the Reno model is one they are studying.

An advocate pointed out this quote by Anchorage “city homeless coordinator” John Morris who also said Reno’s shelter was “very reasonable” but verged on “warehousing people”:

“We walked in, I walked through the building, I walked back out and said, ‘There’s been a mistake. This isn’t what we want to do,’ ” Morris said.

We have asked to get our own tour of inside the Cares Campus, including to get a perspective from staff, but our emails to that effect have been repeatedly ignored. Maybe when Washoe County takes over operations we will try again.

An article we wrote looking into the Siegel Suites model , from steady evictions during the moratorium to their practice of imposing ballooning repayment plans when rent is not fully paid, got lots of comments across our social media platforms. “I'm glad that the term "poverty industry" was used, because that is exactly what is happening,” one person wrote. Another detailed challenges of recently living in one of these properties: “I stayed at the one in [S]parks while pregnant with my son and it was pretty bad. The [r]ooms weren't cleaned well and they don't provide linens at all so people traveling out of town it was a bad place for them. Also once events started [b]ecause they don't have a designated parking spot, parking passes were passed out for a small area but if you weren't home by a certain time you didn't get a place to park.”

Our podcast episode this week is with Eileen Bidwell and her push to get a safe parking program started in northern Nevada. There has been interest in her work from officials, but no sense of urgency to get it started, with possible zoning codes and regulations needing to be changed, just one major caveat.

As part of our ongoing #heroesofreno series, we also profiled Danielle Barrineau. The 41-year-old has gone from wrapping herself in garbage bags several years ago, addicted to heroin, trafficked and pregnant on the streets of Reno, to now becoming a caring mother, peer recovery specialist and a powerful anti-sweeps advocate. Interestingly, she attributes her turnaround to getting housing through federal programs, while avoiding shelters when she could.