MINNEAPOLIS — The Minneapolis City Council has approved three new measures they believe will help prevent and respond to homelessness.
Before voting in Thursday's regular council meeting, council members discussed homelessness at length - all agreeing it's a problem but disagreeing at times on approach.
"We've declared a public health emergency in the city of Minneapolis yet we're still falling short," said council member Emily Koski, who represents Ward 11.
Among the approved measures, the council gave renters relief by unanimously extending the notification period required for evictions from 14 days to 30 days.
With a veto-proof majority, the council also approved a measure mandating the city to report the cost and effectiveness of clearing out homeless encampments.
And, in a 10 to 3 vote, the council allocated a $1.5 million grant using contingency funds to Agate Housing and Services.
The money is to help fix up one of its downtown shelters after the nonprofit last month announced it would need to permanently close the site because conditions were unsafe but too expensive to rehab. The facility, at 510 South 8th St, offers a 42-bed shelter program and a 95-bed board and lodge program.
During the meeting, Ward 4 council member Latrisha Vetaw said she wants the city to help Agate but questioned the timing.
"This decision was made swiftly," Vetaw said. "I also don't see this as an emergency. I think we have time. This is a construction project."
Council member Aurin Chowdhury, Ward 12, addressed concerns raised over the grant's impact on various city departments' budgets.
"While we're taking from a projected surplus, this isn't eliminating the entire surplus," Chowdhury said. "There's still projected surplus within these departments."
The grant is contingent upon Agate securing at least $1.5 million in matching funds by the end of next year. A spokesperson sent a statement in response, telling KARE 11 they are thrilled about the vote.
"We are thrilled about and grateful for the City Council’s vote today. Ten Councilmembers stepped up to save the 510 building and its housing. Our next steps are to find the matching funds required by the City’s gift and get an updated and thorough assessment of the building’s needs. We don’t have all the answers yet, and cannot say with certainty that the building will reopen, but we’re much closer to that happy result."
Meanwhile, Mayor Jacob Frey expressed frustration with council members who have been bashing his response to what many are calling a crisis.
"Several City Council members are trying to prevent the closure of encampments through advocacy, activism, and soon-to-come policy changes," Frey wrote in a statement released Wednesday following two murders and a shooting at three encampments. "This is irresponsible."
In a council-led press conference following the regular meeting, council vice president Aisha Chughtai said the amount of unsheltered people has only increased under the Frey Administration.
"Six years ago, Mayor Frey promised to end homelessness," Chughtai said. "The Frey Administration says no to every solution that we are proposing."
The mayor sent a new statement Thursday, telling KARE 11 that Chughtai's increased homelessness claim is untrue, as "unsheltered homelessness is down 24% in Hennepin County." He also emphasized the dangers of encampments, pointing out his directive to have city staff expedite closures.
"The ordinance passed by Council includes a majority of items the City is already doing. What it doesn't do is address the fact that encampments are dangerous and inhumane. While the Council is focused on procedural tweaks and making it harder to close encampments, my administration is focused on expanding access to shelter, combating the fentanyl epidemic, and continuing our nation-leading affordable housing work," said Frey.