Boise task force was supposed to help find Interfaith shelter site. Here’s what happened
A city of Boise task force released a slate of recommendations following its final meeting Friday, although the final report differed greatly from the task force’s original goal.
The 211-page report from the Shelter Better Task Force details recommendations for the city to improve shelter for Boise’s homeless population. The recommendations were general and did not focus on any specific shelter or location in Boise.
Now, the Interfaith Sanctuary will have the option of applying for a permit from the city for a new shelter, possibly for the controversial State Street location.
The report also noted that many of the task force’s 19 members — who consisted of shelter leaders, neighborhood activists, people who have been homeless, faith leaders, city officials and others — were displeased with the process.
Mayor Lauren McLean formed the task force in July, one month after asking Interfaith Sanctuary to pause its application process for a shelter site at the former Salvation Army thrift store and office at 4306 W. State St. This came after widespread opposition from nearby residents who expressed concerns about the shelter’s impact on crime and local property values.
Interfaith still operates in its River Street location but has said it needs a larger building to better serve Boise’s growing population of homeless people. It bought the State Street property in April and has sold the River Street building. The shelter is renting the River Street building and has the option of staying there until September 2022.
Task force members unhappy with late change
Part of the task force’s original goal was to provide recommendations for a location for the new Interfaith shelter. However, on Aug. 30 — seven weeks into the eight-week process — that goal was scrapped after Courtney Washburn, McLean’s chief of staff, announced that the task force would no longer provide recommendations on specific shelter sites.
Much of the conversation after the start of the task force focused exclusively on Interfaith’s new shelter, but Washburn’s announcement shifted that goal to recommendations on generally improving shelter services.
The report noted that some task force members were uncomfortable recommending a new Interfaith site, in part because of the “gravity” of that decision. It also said, though, that many were unhappy with the sudden change so late in the process. It also said future task forces should be given clearer goals at the outset.
“They expressed disappointment about the timing of the adjustment and resulting changes in the total scope of work, including time afforded to members to develop final recommendations,” the report said.
The dozens of recommendations were divided into three main categories: shelter better practices, community criteria and recommendations for leadership. Some of the key points included making shelter easier for unhoused people to access and collecting better data to address homelessness.
Interfaith Sanctuary Executive Director Jodi Peterson, one of the task force members, said in a phone interview Friday that the recommendations will help in the creation of new shelters, some of which can be geared toward new populations not currently served.
“This is a really good template for measuring best practices as we look at other shelters, not just Interfaith,” Peterson said.
Peterson said she thought the task force was a good format for community dialogue, but that it couldn’t resolve an issue as complex as shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
“I don’t think that any task force can solve anything in a set period of time,” she said, adding she thought there were a lot of constructive comments over the past eight weeks.
Neighborhood leader says issue is back to square one
Katy Decker, president of the Veterans Park Neighborhood Association, also served on the task force and said members had little time to draft their final recommendations. Decker and the association have spoken out against a shelter being built on State Street.
“At the point that it changed, you know, there was limited time remaining to explore the new charge,” Decker said. “What we were able to produce was, relatively speaking, limited.”
In a news release, McLean commended the work of the task force, while adding that finding a site for an emergency shelter remains an important task for the city.
The report also included hundreds of pages of public input, discussion from each meeting and other documentation from the process, all of which are available on the city website.
Interfaith Sanctuary now has the option of requesting a permit for a new shelter, which Peterson said could be the State Street location. Peterson said the organization needed to review some materials before submitting an application.
Decker said the process appears to be back at square one, as it was when Interfaith announced in January plans to purchase the State Street property.
Asked if she thought the task force had achieved anything, Decker said, “You’ll hear that question a lot from the community.”
Washburn will present the report to the City Council in a workshop at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 14, at City Hall.
This story was originally published September 12, 2021 at 4:00 AM.
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