HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution 3203-05-2005
A Resolution
N O ~~ Dos
CREATING THE MAYOR'S ADVISORY COMMISSION ON HOMELESSNESS AND
OUTLINING DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION
WHEREAS, homelessness is a serious problem m the City of Fort Worth (the `City") and
Tarrant County growing by 40% since 2000, up to 5278 persons county wide at any point in time; and
WHEREAS homelessness has many impacts on the community such as persons camping in
public rights-of way overflowing. emergency shelters, negative effects on Central City economic
development, public health concerns, and quality of life cremes that victimize homeless persons and
neighborhoods alike; and
WHEREAS, homeless persons are the City's most vulnerable residents, subject to mental
illness, substance abuse, chronic unemployment, and limited opportunities for unprovmg their
situations, and
WHEREAS, the U S Interagency Council on Homelessness and the U S Department of
Housing and Urban Development are encouraging local communities to develop Ten-Year Plans to
Address Chronic Homelessness ("Ten-Year Plan ') to use federal grants most effectively and such
grants pay for approximately 60% of homeless services m the City and Tarrant County and
WHEREAS a dedicated group of concerned citizens was appointed to a Planning & Advisory
Committee on Homelessness by Mayor Mike Moncrief m April 2004 (the `Committee ') to develop
recommendations for addressing homelessness through aTen-Year Plan, and
WHEREAS the Committee presented its Final Report to the City Council on February 22, 2005
including the following key recommendations
• The City should take a leadership role m addressing homelessness.
• A standing Mayor's Advisory Commission on Homelessness (the `Commission') should be
appointed, with broad representation from all stakeholders and appropriate City staff support.
• The issue of homelessness should be included m the City's Comprehensive Plan, and m the
City's legislative agenda for federal, state and local lobb}nng efforts, and additional resources
should be dedicated to address homelessness, including City tax dollars.
• A centralized one-stop resource facility for the homeless should be established.
• The City should simultaneously address multiple issues, to ensure cohesion by stakeholders and
focus on long-term cost-effective solutions, including scattered site affordable and service
enriched housing, increased public safety resources mhomeless=impacted areas, and improved
accountability for achievement of outcomes across the homeless service system.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
FORT WORTH, TEXAS THAT
1 The City Council hereby accepts the Final Report of the Mayor's Planning & Advisory
Committee (the `Committee') on Homelessness and expresses its sincere appreciation to the Committee
for its dedicated service to all Fort Worth citizens and particularly homeless citizens; and
2 The City Council hereby authorizes creation of a standing Mayor's Advisory Commission on
Homelessness (the `Commission ') and directs that its membership include representatives from all
stakeholder groups, including homeless service providers, neighborhood orgamzahons, businesses, the
faith community experts on mental health, substance abuse and public health, the affordable housing
industry the cnmmal ~ushce system, and Tarrant County government; and
3 The City Council hereby directs the Commission to develop aTen-Year Plan to Address
Chronic Homelessness (the `Ten-Year Plan') for presentation to the City Council by March 2006, and
to develop further recommendations for the Crty Council regarding the issue of homelessness as
necessary to implement the Ten Year Plan, building upon the recommendations contained m the
Committee s Final Report; and
4 The City Council hereby directs the City Manager to ensure that the issue of homelessness is
included m the City's Comprehensive Plan and Legislative Agenda, to request that all City departments
assess their activities with regard to developing and implementing the 10-Year Plan, to request that each
department evaluate the costs of implementing the Committee s recommendations for consideration m
the upcoming City budget, and to assess the possibility of dedicating additional resources to address this
serious community need.
DULY APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH TEXAS
ON THIS THE . ~'~~+ DAY OF MAY 2005
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;~ ~ . ~ Mike Mon rie AYO
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Marty Hendrix C Y SECRETA Y
AP OVED AS TO FORM
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City Att ey
CIT FO WO ,TEXAS
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COUNCIL PROPOSAL
Date: File Number Subject:
05/17105 CP252 Adoption of Resolution Creating Mayor's Advisory Commission on Homelessness
Proposed By• City Manager's Review page;
Councilmember Ralph McCloud City Attorney's Review PAGE 1 OF 1
It is proposed that the Crty Council.
1 Adopt a Resolution creating a standing Mayor's Advisory Commission on Homelessness.
DISCUSSION.
In April 2004 Mayor Moncrief appointed a citizen Planning & Advisory Committee on Homelessness (the `Committee") to
develop recommendations in response to the increasing incidence of homelessness in the City of Fort Worth (the `City"),
concerns expressed by neighborhood representatives regarding community impact, and encouragement from the U.S
Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD") which provides federal grants that fund approximately sixty
percent (60%) of homeless services in the City and Tarrant County The Committee presented its final report to City Council
on February 22, 2005 A summary of the Committee s recommendations from its Final Report is attached to the
accompanying Resolution.
Chief among the recommendations was the creation of a standing Mayor's Advisory Commission on Homelessness (the
`Commission"), similar to existing commissions on other issues. The Commission s purpose would be to develop and
oversee implementation of a Ten-Year Plan to Address Chronic Homelessness, as recommended by HUD This Ten-Year
Plan will help to ensure that the City and Tarrant County continue to compete effectively for federal grants. The Commission
will also advise the City Council on issues regarding homelessness and balance the interests of those directly affected by this
complex issue through its broad representation from all stakeholder groups.
LEGALITY.
The Department of Law finds that this proposal is legal and that it is within the authority of City Council.
FISCAL NOTE.
The Finance Director certifies that the approval of this Resolution will not require the appropriation of additional funds at this
time.
CITY MANAGER S COMMENT.
Staff supports the creation of a standing Mayor's Advisory Commission on Homelessness as recommended by the
Committee.
l
C ncilmem er Councilmemb
LEGALITY
^ FISCAL NOTE
^ CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS
^ CITY POLICIES MANUAL
• Executive Summary
Report of the Mayor's Committee on Homelessness
Histor~& Purpose of the Committee
In April 2004 Mayor Moncrief appointed a 47 member Advisory Committee on
Homelessness. The purpose of the committee was to develop policy recommendations for
addressing homelessness in Fort Worth. The Committee was created to respond to two issues
increasing concerns expressed by neighborhoods about the negative community impacts of
homelessness, and afederal-level initiative encouraging all large cities to develop 10-Year
Plans to End Chronic Homelessness. Membership on the committee included representatives
from all stakeholders, including neighborhood associations, business interests, homeless service
providers, affordable housing developers, religious organizations, the Ft. Worth Independent
School District, and health services professionals.
Findings of the Committee
1) Homelessness has a significant impact on the entire Fort Worth community,
particularly on central city neighborhoods in the central, southeast, and south side. In
addition to the homeless persons often seen `flying a sign asking for money along main
thoroughfares, visible impacts include trash and litter accumulation, camping and `hanging out"
in vacant lots and public rights-of way and overflowing populations m emergency shelters
Less visible effects include negative impacts on central city economic development, public
health issues with tuberculosis and sexually transmitted diseases, vandalism and damage to
private property, increases in Part II "quality of life" crimes, and costs for emergency
responders and public hospital emergency rooms.
2) The Tarrant County Homeless Coalition and Tarrant County government provide
excellent service to the City of Fort Worth, collecting information on the local homeless
population through biannual surveys, and leading an annual federal funds application process to
ensure continued receipt of grants averaging $5 to 7 million per year However, efforts by
homeless service providers and county-level government lack the authority to address the
impacts that homelessness has on city neighborhoods and the business community
3) Recent estimates indicate that 4375 persons are homeless m Tarrant County at any
point in time, 75% of these concentrated within the city limits of Fort Worth.. The homeless
population has grown significantly in the past 10 years, with no end in sight. Services to
this population are provided by a number of loosely coordinated non-profit and governmental
entities, stretched to their limits, with sometimes divergent goals. Despite many successful
collaborative efforts, reduction in Fort Worth's homelessness is unlikely to occur without
enhanced coordination of planning, resource development, and information management.
Key Recommendations of the Mayor's Committee
The City of Fort Worth must begin to play a stronger role in addressing homelessness, by
partnering with the Tarrant County Homeless Coalition and Tarrant County government to
improve existing processes, and by actively taking on new initiatives to address needs.
Specific recommendations include
• ^ Form a Standing Citizen Advisory Committee on Homelessness
o Should have broad representation from all stakeholders,
o Would advise City Council regarding homelessness, and would develop and oversee
implementation of a specific step-by-step plan to address homelessness
o Should be supported by dedicated city staff in the City Manager's office
^ Include homelessness in the Comprehensive Plan, and add homelessness to the city's
legislative agenda
^ Pursue additional resources to address homelessness, including dedication of city tax dollars.
^ Establish a centralized one-stop resource facility for the homeless.
^ Multiple issues should be addressed by the city simultaneously to ensure continued
cohesion of all stakeholders and to focus on long-term cost-effective solutions These
include scattered site affordable and service-enriched housing, increased public safety
resources in homeless-impacted areas, adequate funding, a centralized intake center and
improved accountability for achievement of outcomes across the homeless service system.
Why These Recommendations Are Important
1) The City of Fort Worth needs a 10-year Plan to ensure continued receipt of
federal funds. Lack of aCouncil-adopted plan will weaken the City of Fort Worth's and
Tarrant County's competitiveness in national competitions for such funds. Up to 60% of
local homeless services are funded through federal grants, if that resource diminishes,
homelessness is likely to become more visible and create further negative community impacts.
2) Homelessness is a growing problem that has not decreased despite continued
economic growth in the city, generally affordable housing conditions, and expanded
investment of both community and federal grant resources. Best available information
indicates that the number of emergency shelter residents and unsheltered homeless persons m
Fort Worth has grown nearly 68% since 1997
3) In addition to having a profound negative impact on the homeless individual or family
homelessness has a clear negative impact on neighborhoods and quality of life in Fort
Worth.
Possible Next Steps for Council Action
1) Approve resolution accepting the Mayor's Committee Report, creating and appointing a
Standing Committee on Homelessness, and directing the Committee to develop a 10-Year
Implementation Plan.
2) Approve budget for staffing to support the Mayor's Standing Committee
3) Approve inclusion of homelessness m the City's Comprehensive Plan and Legislative
Agenda
4) Direct staff to develop an ordinance clarifying the role and duties for the Mayor's
Standing Committee, to be returned for Council review at a later date
5) Direct staff to assess the costs and options involved in implementing the various
recommendations contained in the present Mayor's Committee Report, to be reported to
• the Standing Committee & the Council at a later date
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