(Credit: KLBJ staff)
The issue of homelessness is perhaps the biggest discussion in Austin at the moment. Since July 1, people living on the street have been allowed to set up camps in most public places, only fueling the fire of an already sizeable debate around the city. On Tuesday night, the Downtown Austin Alliance will host a public safety forum to discuss the council’s recent changes, how those changes may impact businesses and residents, and to clear up any potential misconceptions that people may have about the relaxed homeless regulations.
The spotlight really started to shine on the issue in 2018 when the Public Safety Commission began discussing whether it should recommend that the city council repeal the ordinances outright. Following a lengthy debate, the idea was later shelved pending more studies. Earlier this year, the issue resurfaced in the Public Safety Commission, which recommended that the city council not fully repeal the homeless ordinance, but rather “decriminlaize” things like camping in public by relaxing most enforcement.
The Downtown Austin Alliance spoke out strongly against the recommendation. During the June 2018 PSC meeting, Bill Brice with the Downtown Austin Alliance read multiple letters from people who had visited Austin, only to be scared off by their interactions with homeless people throughout downtown.
“Walking trips around the hotel are all the same,” Brice read from one of the letters. “So many people asking for food, money, sex, beer. Looked like another city that just let itself go.”
The DAA has argued that the economic vitality of downtown Austin could be impacted if the live music and tourism industries are put at risk.
But it’s not just the economy that has people concerned. Safety remains a constant issue around the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless, and just this week, Austin Police Association President Ken Casaday called the six-block area surrounding the ARCH one of the most violent places in the state.
“Downtown officers worked another shooting this morning at the ARCH,” Casaday tweeted on Monday. “The 6 Block area around the ARCH and dirty 6th could be one of the most violent places in the State of Texas.”
That shooting was captured on cell phone video and has since been circulated around the Internet. An affidavit says Reginald Thomas, 26, allegedly shot the woman following an altercation that began earlier in the night at a bar near Guadalupe and 21st Street. He has since been arrested and charged.
WARNING: THE VIDEO CONTAINS VIOLENCE THAT SOME MAY FIND GRAPHIC
The Tuesday safety forum will be a chance for people to not only hear from the downtown business community, but also from the Austin Police Department about how officers are interpreting and enforcing the new rules, as well as from city officials about homelessness planning.
Panelists will include:
- Chief Brian Manley, Austin Police Department
- Veronica Briseño, Interim Homeless Strategy Officer, City of Austin
- Bill Brice, Vice President of Investor Relations, Downtown Austin Alliance
- Moderated by Dean Angela Evans, LBJ School of Public Affairs
The forum gets underway at 5:00 p.m. at the Central Presbyterian Church at 200 8th Street.
As of Tuesday morning, the DAA says the event is at full capactiy, and no more tickets are being offered.
“If you are registered to attend, please arrive by 5 pm to guarantee entry into the forum. Check-in begins at 4:30 pm. If there is room in the sanctuary after registered attendees arrive, we will let in walk-ins on a first-come, first-served basis,” the website states.
