During tonight's Regular Assembly Meeting, the Anchorage Assembly voted against AR 2023-182(S-1), a resolution to fund the proposed shelter and navigation center at Tudor Avenue and Elmore Road, by a vote of 3-9.
“I'm glad to put this idea to rest and I hope we get to real solutioning with the work we already know works in our city," said Assembly Member George Martinez, who represents District 5, East Anchorage.
The Administration presented an updated capital budget and a list of potential fund sources at a worksession on Friday. Totaling $11 million, the list identifies funds potentially available as unspent dollars from previous appropriations, including $2 million in unspent alcohol tax dollars directed to early education grants and more than $1 million directed to wildfire mitigation.
“The funds identified by the Administration, which don't even cover 100% of the capital costs, would devastate our public health and safety investments," said Assembly Member Felix Rivera after the meeting. Member Rivera serves as the Chair of the Assembly Housing & Homelessness Committee. “But no funds have been identified for operating costs, which we now know are to the tune of $8 million. Shelter is a vital part of ensuring homelessness is rare, one-time and brief, and we have a way to move this conversation forward: the Clean Slate Strategy. Moving forward, our energy and momentum will be devoted to that work and to collaborating with the Administration to implement an Emergency Cold-Weather Sheltering Plan that will keep people safe, fed and warm this winter."
Following the vote on AR 2023-182(S-1), Assembly Members Anna Brawley, Christopher Constant and Felix Rivera introduced a resolution to appropriate some of the potential funds identified by the Administration to fund the Municipality's 2023-2024 Emergency Cold Weather Sheltering plan from October 15 to December 31, 2023. A public hearing on the proposal is scheduled for the September 12 Regular Assembly Meeting.
“Our community's history with sheltering people experiencing homelessness clearly shows that we need small, dispersed shelters – not warehouse people," said Assembly Member Anna Brawley. “Instead, we are already evaluating realistic funding options as quickly as possible to devote resources to support this year's need for dispersed, non-congregate sheltering as part of the Emergency Cold-Weather Shelter Plan, and also implementing longer-term plans for housing and shelter."
###
CONTACT
Anna Brawley | Assembly Member, anna.brawley@anchorageak.gov
George Martinez | Assembly Member, george.martinez@anchorageak.gov
Felix Rivera | Assembly Housing & Homelessness Committee Chair, felix.rivera@anchorageak.gov