Simplified: Sioux Falls City Councilors voted unanimously to move forward with building a $70,000 fence around the vacant lot adjacent to the Bishop Dudley Hospitality House as part of a five-year lease agreement with St. Joseph Catholic Housing.
Why it matters
- The vote was the culmination of weeks of council discussion, including a tense community meeting last week. Before approving the lease Tuesday night, councilors heard from more than a dozen community members, most of whom urged them to vote 'no,' or called for funds to be spent on resources for unhoused people rather than fences to block them out.
- Despite public dissent – including one instance where Mayor Paul TenHaken asked security to escort someone out of the council meeting for interrupting Bishop Dudley Executive Director Madeline Shields' public input – councilors moved forward with the lease agreement and plans to build the fence.
- But Councilor Rich Merkouris was among officials to note that he hopes to see the passion shown at Tuesday's meeting continue to move conversations forward on 'housing first' initiatives and other ways to address homelessness in the city.
"We heard a bundle of good stuff tonight," Merkouris said. "Putting up the fence doesn't stop any of that. We could meet tomorrow and push forward on multiple initiatives as well ... let's not let our disagreement on this stop us."
Tell me more
More than a dozen people came forward to ask the council to vote no on the lease agreement, with only a couple voicing their support.
Dissenters include longtime mental health advocate Phyllis Arends, who said she didn't want to see her tax dollars being spent on the fence, but rather focus on real solutions to help unhoused people find a place to go.
"It is an expense," Arends said. "It is not an investment and does absolutely nothing to help people. This is just being mean."
Others criticized the city's lack of innovation in putting up a fence rather than exploring other solutions.
"We must shift our perspective for managing homelessnes as a crime to treating it as an opportunity for transformation," said Shannon Ward, who owns a business on 8th Street near the Bishop Dudley.
What did the council have to say?
Councilor Curt Soehl pointed out that the city has spent tens of millions of dollars to support affordable housing and local nonprofits during his seven years on the council.
"I sincerely believe we're trying to do the best thing for our city," Soehl said.
Councilor Merkouris said he wants to see solutions for homelessness that do not involve law enforcement. He added that, with the fence preventing larger groups from gathering, he expects street teams and other non-police interventions will be able to better help people in smaller groups connect with the resources they need.
- He added that it's a "legitimate objection" to question why the city would use public funds to build a fence on private property.
"Here's why: the Bishop Dudley is ours ... I believe public use of funds is appropriate because this is a community asset," Merkouris said.
Councilor Miranda Basye said she agrees with the public's frustrations in the process of city government, but ultimately she voted in favor of the lease and fence because she wants people to feel safe using community resources like the Bishop Dudley Hospitality House.
Councilor David Barranco noted that all told, Tuesday night's vote was a "win" because of the conversations it brought forward.
"What we’ve learned is that new ideas, more ideas, more collaboration and more positive public energy for things like a (second) Safe Home and other ideas you discussed are probably what inspires me to continue to work together as a team," he said.
What happens next?
The council has already approved funding for the fence. Now, with the approval of the lease agreement, it'll be up to the city to get bids and hire a contractor to build it.
