Homeless Encampment
The City of Jamestown and Chautauqua Opportunities Inc. are at odds over how to best address escalating homelessness issues in the city.
The city declared a state of emergency earlier this month in response to the increased number of encampments around the city.
Since that declaration, the city has cleared one homelessness encampment on Ransom Alley with plans to next focus on a section of the Riverwalk and the North Main Street viaduct.
COI stated in a press release that the organization “does not support homeless sweeps, but rather supports a more measured approach that focuses on addressing the root causes of homelessness.
Homeless sweeps are increasing across the country in response to the Supreme Court’s ruling in June (City of Grant’s Pass v. Johnson) that enforcing public camping prohibitions on homelessness encampments is not “cruel and unusual punishment.” But, just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.”
The City responded to that statement, saying, “The State of Emergency was declared due to the proliferation of illegal encampments, which have introduced serious public health and safety risks, including improper disposal of needles, human waste, environmental damage, and increased criminal activity. The City is addressing these challenges with a comprehensive and compassionate approach, conducting outreach and providing resources before any sweeps.”
The city said homeless individuals received advanced notice of the cleanup and a 96-hour relocation period. They said outreach services, including mobile crisis support, were available on the day of the cleanup, and the process proceeded smoothly without incident.
The city also said that since the emergency declaration they have been working closely with local, county, and state agencies, as well as non-profits, to provide critical services and support homeless individuals. .
The city also confirmed with Governor Kathy Hochul and the Office of Mental Health (OMH) that funding for the Crisis Stabilization Center for Recovery Options Made Easy (ROME) is advancing. Additionally, the Governor and the OMH are collaborating with hospital-based providers to expand acute psychiatric capacity.
In the press release, the city stated they were disappointed by COI’s recent press release and statements regarding the city’s efforts to address homelessness. COI is the designated Continuum of Care (CoC) for Chautauqua County and is the lead agency for the Chautauqua County Homeless Coalition. The City said that the Coalition has scheduled only six virtual meetings, totaling just six hours, for the entire year.
The City also said that that at a meeting discussing homeless numbers earlier this year, COI claimed there were only 30 individuals experiencing homelessness, which they say was clearly inaccurate.
The City also expressed concerns over an outreach position that was eliminated by the agency.
COI will be holding a meeting at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday, August 20 at the Northwest Arena to review data collected, and to continue a community discussion on strategies to address homelessness. Homeless Coalition members, community stakeholders, and concerned citizens are invited to attend.
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