We’ve all seen them, the chaotic, shambled tents and other improvised shelter set up in plain view on public property and sometimes abandoned private property. Our view of this complex problem is that doing nothing is not an option, nor is trying to enforce the existing law using fines and the threat of jail. This manifestation of homelessness, is not, as some argue, a “housing problem.” Instead, it is the confluence of lack of low barrier shelter options, a mental health crisis among people without conventional housing or resources, and the result of powerful, toxic drugs that are extremely cheap.
“Sweeping” encampments might be a relief from seeing the problem, but it simply reconstitutes itself somewhere else. Jail? By one estimate, keeping a prisoner in jail costs over $112,000 per year in New Mexico. How about building apartments for all those people living in encampments? Big Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) are now approaching $300,000 per unit in New Mexico and they cost as much as $5,000 per unit, per year to operate. And without effective case management, an apartment won’t solve other complex issues faced by people living in our community struggling with mental illness and addiction.
We’re exploring building a continuum of housing that meets people where they are, not where they want to be, even if those solutions don’t meet the strict letter of the zoning or building code. This is a conversation we have to begin now and have the patience to sustain over time, and the willingness to invest in solutions that might not have been tried before.