Housing the homeless is a passion for Cooper. He is a great public servant. People need to get involved with the Alliance and with the OKC Community Foundation.

I am honestly so proud to have Cooper as my city council member.

observation. much more homeless in Seattle than before. Also much more violent! Research can be made if you google it.

But is marijuana the primary driver of the increased homelessness? You claimed it, you cite something that proves it...

I am honestly so proud to have Cooper as my city council member.

:yeahthat::iagree::yeahthat::iagree::yeahthat::iag ree:

OKC already does this.

Good to know, I wasn't sure if they had started yet or not, I knew they had investigated doing it. Also GTK about the housing plan OKC has started, I've read for years (if not decades) that the best first thing to help the homeless is to get them into a home, and things fall into place fairly well after that, usually.

I'm a property manager and have never been told that by the police. I have been told what they do by an officer and it is take them in, give them a ticket and release them. They will typically try to talk the person into getting assistance, but I've seen a few of the regulars in downtown decline any help. It has quieted down for us in the past few months, but we have also added some visible security like cameras and flood lights. 90% are agreeable and move along peacefully, only a few have really been troublesome, attacking or trying to intimidate security/ staff. The OKC Green Team has a homeless outreach program supposedly, but I have yet to see them make it to a person we've called in. I really wish we had more people and resources to assist them. So many of us are just a few bad months from being in their spot.

Thanks for sharing your experience. It is nice to hear that some officers are trying to help them. I have met a lot of very nice people who are just down on their luck, in some cases through no fault of their own. It saddens me that we don't have the resources to help our homeless neighbors.

observation. much more homeless in Seattle than before. Also much more violent! Research can be made if you google it.

Yes, we know that Googling produces only accurate information... especially when it has to do with social issues. And, anecdotal stories and "eyewitness accounts" certainly qualifies as factual data. If I notice something on my way to work and interpret it to my way of thinking, it must be true for the entire city, state, and country. Who needs accurate data from which to base knowledge and judgements anyway?

Thanks for those resources. We will start contacting those. Our Council Person refuses to even take our calls.

Out of curiosity, who is your council person?

Out of curiosity, who is your council person?

Our business is located in Ward 6.

Mug, I am curious... did the homeless problem increase decrease or have little to no affect after marijuana was legalized?

It increased dramatically and transitioned. It went to younger pot-users coming from everywhere to Denver in search of marijuana-based jobs and living on the streets because there weren't enough. Then it changed to significantly more of the typical drug and alcohol addicteds and mentally-ill and to hundreds of fentanyl addicts and now, thousands of migrants to the sanctuary city (l'll be nice).

Just today, the mayor admitted the spending of hundreds of millions $ on buying hotels to mass the homeless together isn't working and is going to focus on spending a secretive more millions $ placing and paying for apartments.

Our business is located in Ward 6.

I have found her to be pretty non responsive as well. My business is also in Ward 6

It increased dramatically and transitioned. It went to younger pot-users coming from everywhere to Denver in search of marijuana-based jobs and living on the streets because there weren't enough. Then it changed to significantly more of the typical drug and alcohol addicteds and mentally-ill and to hundreds of fentanyl addicts and now, thousands of migrants to the sanctuary city (l'll be nice).

Just today, the mayor admitted the spending of hundreds of millions $ on buying hotels to mass the homeless together isn't working and is going to focus on spending a secretive more millions $ placing and paying for apartments.
This sounds very anecdotal. Can you supply some linked data showing increases, correlation and causes?

Reading through reporting from the Denver area mostly blames the increasing cost of housing as Denver has become a very expensive city to live in. They speculate as to immigrants being bused in, but I cannot find numbers to support. It shows that women and their children are a large and growing part of the problem. Almost 10,000 kids/students are served in Denver. But the mj industry isn’t cited in the article or numbers quoted.

That was a timeline Rover. MJ was legalized in CO in 2012. This is 2024. As for you're not being able to find information, you must not have tried very hard. I was asked and l gave an answer to that person. If you don't like my answer, do your own research and maybe do a better job.

That was a timeline Rover. MJ was legalized in CO in 2012. This is 2024. As for you're not being able to find information, you must not have tried very hard. I was asked and l gave an answer to that person. If you don't like my answer, do your own research and maybe do a better job.

I did research and found no such correlation that is cause and affect related to mj legalization. Correlation does not equal causation.

But is marijuana the primary driver of the increased homelessness? You claimed it, you cite something that proves it...

No, I said the homelessness increased after marijuana became legal. And I cited observation in my home town which legalized mj and then there has been a huge increase. I did NOT say it was primary driver (in fact, I actually said Mental Health is/was) but I said it increased after we legalized mj, which is fact well documented.

Let me simplify my argument, it is true that a child gets acne when they become teenagers. Now, I didn't say children get acne because they are teenagers, but it is true that they get it when they become teens (due to puberty). .. My similar argument, homelessness became more rampant in my and other large cities after we legalized marijuana (but the primary driver was defunding mental health and much stronger drug/alcohol issues that magnified after we legalized mj). Make Sense?

No, I said the homelessness increased after marijuana became legal. And I cited observation in my home town which legalized mj and then there has been a huge increase. I did NOT say it was primary driver (in fact, I actually said Mental Health is/was) but I said it increased after we legalized mj, which is fact well documented.

Let me simplify my argument, it is true that a child gets acne when they become teenagers. Now, I didn't say children get acne because they are teenagers, but it is true that they get it when they become teens (due to puberty). .. My similar argument, homelessness became more rampant in my and other large cities after we legalized marijuana (but the primary driver was defunding mental health and much stronger drug/alcohol issues that magnified after we legalized mj). Make Sense?
You are still trying to associate a cause and effect when there isn’t any clear demonstrable relationship . Coincidental timing doesn’t constitute cause and effect. More like acne increased and so did homelessness, so acne is linked to homelessness. Lol

I have found her to be pretty non responsive as well. My business is also in Ward 6

The only time we saw her near the Homeless Alliance was a morning when the city trash group came out to pick up trash around our area. Soon after that day, they started fining businesses in our area for not picking up trash that the homeless had left on their property.

I am trying to get back to the main topic. Here is a recent article on the Reconvening of the Interagency Council on Homelessness (https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/more-important-than-ever-interagency-council-on-homelessness-reconvenes/ar-BB1mT9lv?ocid=BingNewsSerp).

Press release:

********

Key to Home Partnership houses 26 people living outside in various encampment sites downtown
11/25/2024

Twenty-six people living in encampments near downtown and along Oklahoma City Boulevard are being housed and provided case management support thanks to the Key to Home Partnership.

Since September 2023, 332 people living outdoors have been placed in homes through the initiative, surpassing the halfway mark of the overall goal.

The Key to Home Partnership is a collaboration of more than 50 organizations working together in new ways to address homelessness differently in Oklahoma City. One goal of the Partnership is to rehouse 500 people experiencing unsheltered homelessness by the end of 2025 through the Encampment Rehousing Initiative.

“We are thrilled at the progress we’ve made so far, and we look forward to continuing the work of the Encampment Rehousing Initiative because we are making real strides in reducing long-term, unsheltered homelessness in our community,” Key to Home Partnership Strategy Implementation Manager Jamie Caves said. “As we continue our efforts, we’re excited to honor the nonprofit service partners who’ve joined forces to achieve this milestone. They’ve shown incredible teamwork and creativity, stepping up to new challenges to serve their clients, and we are grateful for their partnership. This achievement highlights their success and shows that we are always more effective working together.”

People wanting to learn more about the Key to Home Partnership should visit keytohomeokc.org.

Partners

Staff from Key to Home Partnership, Mental Health Association Oklahoma and Homeless Alliance provided outreach and engagement services to those living in the encampments.
City Rescue Mission secured the apartments.
Focus on Home furnished apartments with necessities.
OCHA assisted with rental subsidies.
Case managers are provided by the Homeless Alliance, Northcare, Catholic Charities and City Care, who will help people stabilize and recover over the next year.
Healing Hands provided health screenings and emotional support assessments.
According to the annual Point in Time count, there are more than 1,800 people living on Oklahoma City’s streets. Oklahoma City’s homelessness rate is a result of a myriad of complex factors, such as low wages, the lack of affordable housing, rising eviction rates and inflation.

About Key to Home Partnership

To address homelessness differently in Oklahoma City, a new system of governance called the Key to Home Partnership was launched in April 2023. Key to Home is a public-private partnership of over 50 agencies whose mission is to address homelessness differently in OKC alongside the City of OKC and the private sector.

The Key to Home Partnership’s action plan is to reduce unsheltered homelessness through housing. The four goals for 2023-2025 include:

Create a new governance system.
Address homelessness differently by improving infrastructure and capacity.
Achieve a reduction in Youth Homelessness by rehousing or diverting 100 youth by the end of 2025.
Achieve a reduction in chronic unsheltered homelessness by rehousing 500 people experiencing unsheltered homelessness by the end of 2025.

I give the City a ton of credit for the progress they are making.

They not only found homes from most the people that were camping out in the I-44 & Penn area, as soon as anything crops up, someone in my neighborhood reports it and they are right there to move people along.

There are also lots more night shelter beds for the coming cold months.

I know we still have a long way to go, but it's a very good start.

The city smartly did not try to throw money at something that was not already a tried and true best practice. It worked in Houston, so set it here to accomplish the same and, what do you know? It worked here, too! This was a good, common sense approach, and I applaud the city for committing to it.

Yeah, the whole key is low-barrier shelters and apartments where sobriety isn't mandatory because so many have addiction issues and they would rather be on the street than forced into going cold turkey.

Almost everyone knows people with addictions and even with fantastic counseling and rehab, a big percentage just can't get straight. So it's not realistic to base housing on that condition, and it seems cities are finally figuring that out.

^^^^^^^^^
Beyond that, it provides persons experiencing homelessness a physical address that allows them to get an ID, apply for and receive healthcare and other benefits to which they might be entitled, receive visits from case managers and begin to reintegrate with the world around them. Having a physical address with a mailbox is fundamental to societal interaction. Until someone has one they are very practically doomed to live on the fringes.

I give the City a ton of credit for the progress they are making.

They not only found homes from most the people that were camping out in the I-44 & Penn area, as soon as anything crops up, someone in my neighborhood reports it and they are right there to move people along.

There are also lots more night shelter beds for the coming cold months.

I know we still have a long way to go, but it's a very good start.

Drove on Western under and around I-40 yesterday and the camps were gone. Hopefully, that was a part of this program, too. Breaking up the camps and just scattering people to other areas really isn't a solution.

I saw this yesterday 12/06/24 at I44 and May Ave.

I saw this yesterday 12/06/24 at I44 and May Ave.

That lady has been there a while. Not sure what the story is. They have cleared her out before but she keeps coming back.

Has to be more than one person though. The logistics of one person moving and assembling all that stuff is hard to fathom. And at such a visible and busy intersection. Also the on ramp to I44 West at 36th if you look to the right toward the park you can see a pretty trashy encampment. it is pretty well hidden when there are leaves on the trees and brush but very visible this time of year. They would be much less of an eye sore if the camps were not littered with so much trash all around.

^^^^ You would be surprised how busy a homeless person can be at building a camp. I wouldn't doubt for a minute that one woman is doing all that. Some of them work like busy beavers. They also leave trash everywhere. They have no concern about cleanliness.

Lacking a city provided bin to be collected each week, and heavily dependent on “packaged” goods, where are they to dispose of trash? Like bathrooms, most commercial receptacles are pretty well secured from use by anyone but the owner and paying customers.

That picture is indeed the doings of one woman.

I reported her camp several times to the City, and she merely moved everything to the other side of May.


The most interesting aspect of this image is that it demonstrates the colossal amount of trash one person can generate. Then a good wind comes along and all that is strewn for blocks. Then it just mounts up again.

Also, a good deal of the crap found in these camps is stolen from surrounding businesses. If you look closely, you can see at least 4 shopping carts and all those boxes likely came from Sam's.


I used to run a nonprofit with a big homeless outreach program that had a van to go out and talk to the homeless and connect them with the myriad of services offered by L.A. County. Almost none of them would take the ample help.

So, all you can do for many is not allow them to completely trash the community and not allow the associated crime to take hold.

However, they love to be near busy intersections so they can easily panhandle.

...
However, they love to be near busy intersections so they can easily panhandle.

We live a few blocks away, so drive by there fairly often and have seen her often, but haven't ever really seen her panhandle around there, strangely enough.

That picture is indeed the doings of one woman.

I reported her camp several times to the City, and she merely moved everything to the other side of May.


The most interesting aspect of this image is that it demonstrates the colossal amount of trash one person can generate. Then a good wind comes along and all that is strewn for blocks. Then it just mounts up again.

Also, a good deal of the crap found in these camps is stolen from surrounding businesses. If you look closely, you can see at least 4 shopping carts and all those boxes likely came from Sam's.


I used to run a nonprofit with a big homeless outreach program that had a van to go out and talk to the homeless and connect them with the myriad of services offered by L.A. County. Almost none of them would take the ample help.

So, all you can do for many is not allow them to completely trash the community and not allow the associated crime to take hold.

However, they love to be near busy intersections so they can easily panhandle.

What actually does The City do to respond to that? What department handles that? OCPD? Other? Do they just tell them to move? Do they confiscate all that stuff? Do they stay there until the person leaves? If she just moves to the other side of May Ave The City can't be doing much when these things are reported when they respond to those reports. I know the camp I referred to you can see on the I44 on ramp has been there for many months.

What actually does The City do to respond to that? What department handles that? OCPD? Other? Do they just tell them to move? Do they confiscate all that stuff? Do they stay there until the person leaves? If she just moves to the other side of May Ave The City can't be doing much when these things are reported when they respond to those reports. I know the camp I referred to you can see on the I44 on ramp has been there for many months.

It's through the Action Center.

They send out a team to evaluate and offer them services. There are now enough night shelter beds for everyone to sleep inside if they prefer.

Some are targeted for the Key to Home program, where they set them up in an apartment.

If they reject the services and choose to stay on the street, they will continue to visit them. After a while, they will tell them they can't camp on public property, and of course they can't camp on private property either, but in that case the property owner has to report them.

If the person or people won't accept services, they will eventually force them to move along and then send a crew to clean up the huge mess left behind. Until they permanently broke up the camp at I-44 and Penn, the City was out there literally multiple times a week for months on end, cleaning up after them.

I would hate to see the cost of all these visits by social services and police, the cleanup crews, the police, and ambulances. I'm sure the cost of getting them a place to stay has to be much less.

^^^^ You would be surprised how busy a homeless person can be at building a camp. I wouldn't doubt for a minute that one woman is doing all that. Some of them work like busy beavers. They also leave trash everywhere. They have no concern about cleanliness.

That's my biggest problem with this. The trash generated. I really hope this problem gets better under control as there are spots that look as bad as the coastal cities I have been to recently. Hopefully Key to Home will make these situations better. That photo of I-44 and May Ave. is incredible.

Went to Lowe’s today. The camp had moved to the west side of May. The east side of May had been cleaned.

The pic I posted is on the west side of May. It was directly south of and across the street from the Caseys.

That picture is indeed the doings of one woman.

I reported her camp several times to the City, and she merely moved everything to the other side of May.


The most interesting aspect of this image is that it demonstrates the colossal amount of trash one person can generate. Then a good wind comes along and all that is strewn for blocks. Then it just mounts up again.

Also, a good deal of the crap found in these camps is stolen from surrounding businesses. If you look closely, you can see at least 4 shopping carts and all those boxes likely came from Sam's.


I used to run a nonprofit with a big homeless outreach program that had a van to go out and talk to the homeless and connect them with the myriad of services offered by L.A. County. Almost none of them would take the ample help.

So, all you can do for many is not allow them to completely trash the community and not allow the associated crime to take hold.

However, they love to be near busy intersections so they can easily panhandle.

I think at that point start charging with destruction of public property, littering and send them to jail.\

It can't be all carrots, sometimes someones needs a stick.

Drove by about an hour ago and the lady on the 39th frontage road was gone and there was a crew cleaning up the huge mess. There was a very large truck completely full of garbage, along with 4-5 shopping carts that I'm sure will be returned.

I hope they got her into a shelter.


Terrible photo but you get the idea:

HTTP://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/homeless121024a.jpg

I live at 17th and May and take May to 44 every day for work, so I am also familiar with the woman in question. Her "camp", if I remember correctly, started on the SE corner of 38th and May on the sidewalk. If you googlemaps 3797 N May and August of 2024, you can see her. Then, she moved to the north side of the I-44 on ramp going east. Then moved to the south side of the I-44 offramp coming west. And now to where she is today.

I almost feel sorry for her losing all her possessions. To us it is just junk but to her it was her whole world. I don't know what the answer to homelessness is but it sure seems like the numbers are growing. I hear about a lot of people living in their cars too. A few weeks ago I saw a lady living on the sidewalk at 63rd and Meridian right out in the open with nothing to even block the wind.

I almost feel sorry for her losing all her possessions. To us it is just junk but to her it was her whole world. I don't know what the answer to homelessness is but it sure seems like the numbers are growing. I hear about a lot of people living in their cars too.

The City is taking a 3-prong approach, following the successful Houston model:

1. Make sure there are enough beds in a low-barrier night shelter (meaning they don't have to be sober, can bring their pet, etc.)
2. Offer permanent housing and social services, also low-barrier
and ultimately
3. Not allow them to camp when 1&2 are available.

We've really only been on this path for a year or two and it's definitely helping, but will take more time and resourses.

I haven't been on my every morning lap around Overholser since working from home starting last June. Back then there were two or three tents on the lake road near the mobile home park on the west side of the road. I went that way today and they're gone.

I almost feel sorry for her losing all her possessions. To us it is just junk but to her it was her whole world. I don't know what the answer to homelessness is but it sure seems like the numbers are growing. I hear about a lot of people living in their cars too. A few weeks ago I saw a lady living on the sidewalk at 63rd and Meridian right out in the open with nothing to even block the wind.

That woman isn't new to that area. In the past, she has been a regular at the bus stop on the NW corner of that intersection.

I almost feel sorry for her losing all her possessions. To us it is just junk but to her it was her whole world. I don't know what the answer to homelessness is but it sure seems like the numbers are growing. I hear about a lot of people living in their cars too. A few weeks ago I saw a lady living on the sidewalk at 63rd and Meridian right out in the open with nothing to even block the wind.

If there are reasonable services available to help her and she is refusing them, which seems to be the case here since she keeps returning to the intersection, there are times tough love is the only way to handle a situation. Sometimes misplaced empathy results in enabling.

If there are reasonable services available to help her and she is refusing them, which seems to be the case here since she keeps returning to the intersection, there are times tough love is the only way to handle a situation. Sometimes misplaced empathy results in enabling.

This is not argumentative, but, what do you suggest? The current trend is that criminalizing being poor and on the street is expensive and not productive. The only tough love I know of is incarceration or involuntary commitment to a mental hospital. Both are more expensive than Oklahoma wants to pay. And both of them are overcrowded and underfunded already.

I dont know if anyone, anywhere has suggested a group or the city or ? buy a piece of land and fence it in. Maybe even put up some basic like 10 x10 concrete pads with a metal roof over the pad. Make the grounds a sanctioned camping homeless camping area. Provide toilet and showers, pay a few residents some cash to keep these common areas clean. Also provide a large dumpster for trash. This would be a very low barrier camp area. Fence of from view of the streets. Divide the area into two, one for men and one for women and maybe a mixed or none gender specific. Drinking and drugs tolerated, but limit no fights or something like that. Basically make it a place that the homeless will want to go camp at. Aid groups can go to a specific area set aside for them to be able to provide services such as clothing giveaways, hot food, etc. Maybe this would help decrease the other homeless camps.

^^^^ Those type set-ups are pretty regularly suggested around the country. Las Vegas had someone pushing that idea for some abandoned US Government facility a few years ago, IIRC. Maybe Oscar Goodman.

The upshot is that the risk that it would become either a prison or a lawless wasteland make it not feasible in practice. The civil rights issues of compelling people to attend are a problem.

This is not argumentative, but, what do you suggest? The current trend is that criminalizing being poor and on the street is expensive and not productive. The only tough love I know of is incarceration or involuntary commitment to a mental hospital. Both are more expensive than Oklahoma wants to pay. And both of them are overcrowded and underfunded already.

If one is so out of control as to be removed multiple times only to return to the same corner when there are programs available such as Pete outlined, the person clearly has mental problems, substance abuse problems or both and doesn't want help. So, yes involuntary commitment is the answer. It is not criminalizing being poor, it is identifying those who lack the ability or desire to properly support themselves and get them back into "working condition" or to a place they aren't on street corners. What is happening now clearly doesn't work for chronic homeless. Criminal incarceration isn't what is needed, it's mental and substance rehabilitation, even if they don't want it.

I think Colorado is a good example of what works "better" and what clearly doesn't. The city of Denver has spent massive amounts of money buying multiple hotels for migrants and homeless to live in, handing out phones and debit cards and providing free medical care yet if you go downtown, certain streets are still lined with addicted and homeless. As an aside, even the residents of Denver have become fed up with the situation and voted down taxing themselves to build free-to-the-homeless housing in November.

Go to Colorado Springs, Pueblo or the suburbs and though there are some, there are few homeless to be seen because they know those cities practice "tough love" and provide few giveaway services.

Perhaps it has been brought up to the citizens and l wasn't aware, but you say Oklahomans aren't willing to pay for mental health care fore those truly in need and a danger to the public and themselves. Has it ever been brought up as a serious proposal as a means to get people off the streets? Has a process ever been presented that is not seen as "free housing for the homeless" or an attractive giveaway the way Denver has done but a pure treatment program? I would bet $1 Oklahomans on a community by community basis
would be much more open to that than you think in return for eliminating people living on the streets, alleys and creek beds.

By the way, I have driven by the I-44/North May intersection about ten times since this was posted and haven't seen her since.

The wife and I went to McDonalds tonight on 39th and MacArthur.and ate inside. There was a elderly homeless man inside sitting by the door with just a drink and backpack with a few other things and a medium sized dog curled up on the floor by his feet. After we finished eating my wife went up to him and asked if he would like to have some food and a burger patty for his dog. He said yes he would like to have a Whopper, and some fries. She smiled, told him it was McDonalds, they don't have Whoppers so would he like something like a big mac or a quarter pounder. He said he would like a big mac and that his dog liked cheese on the burger. We got him his food and his dog a burger patty with cheese and gave it to him. He was very appreciative, I think his dog was too. He cut up the burger patty with cheese with a knife and put it on the floor for his dog on the tray it was on. We would rather do something like that than give someone standing on a corner any money.

I drove under the Classen bridge at lunch today, and there was a crew placing big rocks where the grass used to be. The rocks are too big to walk over and you definitely can't camp on them. Wonder if this is part of the Key to Home's Encampment Rehousing Initiative?

I drove under the Classen bridge at lunch today, and there was a crew placing big rocks where the grass used to be. The rocks are too big to walk over and you definitely can't camp on them. Wonder if this is part of the Key to Home's Encampment Rehousing Initiative?

Yes.

They did the same thing at I-44 and Penn.


They find homes for all the people in an encampment then place deterents to reestablishing the camp. Has worked really well thus far.

Classen bridge? Where is this? Classen and...?
I hope the Belle Isle bridge complex at I-44 and NW Expwy is next on their list to make undesirable to inhabit. It is a mess and attracts people and even vehicles underneath on several levels all the way to the flood control canal. This whole complex needs securing and clean-up.

Classen bridge? Where is this? Classen and...?
I hope the Belle Isle bridge complex at I-44 and NW Expwy is next on their list to make undesirable to inhabit. It is a mess and attracts people and even vehicles underneath on several levels all the way to the flood control canal. This whole complex needs securing and clean-up.

It's near downtown, where the Oklahoma City Blvd. goes over Classen between Sheridan and Reno. It's just west of the City Rescue Mission.

There were barriers put on the ledge of the bridge at 44th and I-35 last fall as well to discourage the homeless population from camping there. If you didn't see that intersection before the barriers were put up, it was not exactly painting OKC in the best light. I have volunteered to go on Homeless Outreach on the south side several times a month for several years and know a lot of the people who camped there by name. Unfortunately, the physical barriers that keep the homeless out of these areas take resources away from resources that could be used in other areas.

A controversial bill that would prohibit cities other than Oklahoma City and Tulsa from providing shelter to unhoused people was introduced directly in response to Norman's homelessness problem, according to the author, despite having potential repercussions across the state.

Senate Bill 484, introduced by state Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, would prevent municipalities in all cities with a population under 300,000 from using city resources to operate homeless shelters or perform homeless outreach.

https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/politics/2025/01/16/oklahoma-senate-bill-homeless-shelters-norman-ok-lisa-standridge/77718047007/

https://www.oklahoman.com/story/news/politics/2025/01/16/oklahoma-senate-bill-homeless-shelters-norman-ok-lisa-standridge/77718047007/

A bad bill. Homelessness is a local town problem and state law should stay out of it. If Norman city council made a mistake with dealing with their homeless issue, then it should take responsibility for it and correct it. I doubt OKC and Tulsa legislators want to set up a situation by voting yes to bring more homeless from throughout Oklahoma to OKC and Tulsa.

A bad bill. Homelessness is a local town problem and state law should stay out of it. If Norman city council made a mistake with dealing with their homeless issue, then it should take responsibility for it and correct it. I doubt OKC and Tulsa legislators want to set up a situation by voting yes to bring more homeless from throughout Oklahoma to OKC and Tulsa.

I am sure the bill contains a mechanism where small town will share the buren of providing services to the homeless with OKC and Tulsa.of not it is just shifting the cost of a poor economy from small towns to big cities.

I am sure the bill contains a mechanism where small town will share the buren of providing services to the homeless with OKC and Tulsa.of not it is just shifting the cost of a poor economy from small towns to big cities.

None of the press or the wording seems to indicate this at all.

I am sure the bill contains a mechanism where small town will share the buren of providing services to the homeless with OKC and Tulsa.of not it is just shifting the cost of a poor economy from small towns to big cities.

Why are you sure of it? Have you read the bill? If so, show us this mechanism you’re sure exists.

The bill was authored by a woman in Norman who has stated the specific reason behind it was to stop anyone there from providing assistance to the homeless.

I suppose it's a twisted way of hoping to drive them out of where she happens to live.


On the other end of the spectrum, the Outrage Brigade is going off on social media over the boulders placed at I-44 and Penn and the Classen underpass. What they haven't bothered to understand is that only happens after finding homes for the displaced camp. And these virtue signalers also have no idea about the crime, drugs, violence, break-ins, theft, vandalism, human waste, and mountains of garbage that are part and parcel of these camps.

Those bigger camps can't be allowed near homes or places of business. There are massive public safety and health issues.


The Key to Home initiative (finding housing for people in one camp after another, then ensuring the camp isn't reestablished) is doing good work. It's just going to take some time and there will always be people who absolutely refuse shelter, even when it's free and there are very few rules.