December Meeting Canceled

November Meeting Notes

Agenda:  1) Welcome by host Nicole Utz 2) Introductions 3) CAHOOTS update by Kim Hanson and Ashley Hamilton 4) Preliminary results of CANDO Good Neighbor Guide distribution by Michael Livingston   

Present:  Nicole Utz, Facilitator; Moises Ramos and Bruce Donohue with UGM; Ashley Hamilton with MWVCAA; Kim Hanson with United Way of the Mid-Willamette Valley; Josh Lair with Be Bold Street Ministries; Stephen Goins with Northwest Human Services; Hazel Patton and Jim Vu with Salem Main Street Association; TJ Sullivan with Salem Area Chamber; Al Tandy with Salem Summit; Alvin Klausen with Victory Club and Kurt Schrader's office; Neal Kern, Sarah Owens and Michael Livingston with CANDO.  Not present: anyone from law enforcement.

Welcome by Nicole.  Intros around table.  CAHOOTS/HEART project update: currently planning 1 van, 5-6 FTE (1 EMT and 1 QMHP at $18/hr), limited shifts, serving citywide, anyone in crisis (not just downtown, not just “homeless” and not 24/7). Twenty-five “key stakeholders” are meeting Nov 21st. They met with Chemeketa CC re training program specifically for program. Program to be 1yr pilot starting some time in spring, and named Homeless Emergency Assistance Response Team. Will be dispatched out of 911 and administered by MWVCAA. United Way proposes to cover cost of van and CAHOOTS consulting fees. Preliminary budge estimate is $.5M. Eugene’s Public Works Department covers CAHOOTS $150 vehicle maintenance. Ashley estimates it will cost $70/hr to run the van. Hoping to get more info on the startup program in Olympia. Was not able to go on ride-along.  Distinguish MCRT? MCRT relates to criminal behavior. Can request MCRT, but subject to availability and fit. Stephen estimated about 20% of his requests were answered.  CAHOOTS is “outside criminal modality.” People who won’t get into back of patrol car to be taken to PCC will get into a van just to talk (sometimes ppl just want someone to talk to).

TJ said Salem Health was ”overrun” and asked if providers have resources to staff the van, maybe rotating shifts. Jim asked for more information on annual budget, e.g. cost of document management system startup costs. TJ asked about providers' ability to share client info. Discussion of HMIS - ServicePoint versus HIPPA-protected records, cloud-based ”social solutions” systems like Apricot that are HMIS-compatible.  NWHS is plans to use Apricot to document their street outreach efforts.  JIm returned to TJ's question whether Salem has resources to staff an outreach team.  Nicole said such a team would need a lead agency, and SHA had considered, but decided there was not the capacity.  Al Tandy suggested rotating staff.  Stephen said it would be possible in theory to "Frankenstein a team" but it would have to be 9-5, and wouldn’t be faithful to the CAHOOTS model, which operates after hours.  Josh asked if the post-QMHP agency connections were in place.  Kim said they were still figuring out whether Marion County or NWHS was the appropriate follow-up agency, and added that the project almost derailed because the full continuum of care was not in place.  TJ said that the business community was getting to the point that they are "ready to invest" and that Larry Tokarski was putting together a meeting for that purpose.  Nicole said what was needed was more permanent supportive housing developments like Redwood Crossings.   

Report on the distribution of CANDO's Good Neighbor Guide:  Visited 72 downtown Salem businesses and spoke with owner or manager at 29 of them.  Guide received a uniformly positive response, and most immediately read it.  Some asked for extra copies for employees.  “Very helpful”

Asked if business had problems with "homeless" individuals?

• 15 “too busy to talk”
• 11  “not mentioned”
• 13  no problems, or no current problems
• 8  “yes, but no specifics”
• 15  occasional, or infrequent (intoxicated; “alternate reality; unruly person asked to leave; people drunk or using drugs at sidewalk restaurant tables; people sleeping in doorways when staff arrive
• 4 on High St north of Marion (2 based on previous contacts) identified continuing serious problems -- e.g., vandalism and people mentally ill and out of control)  Owner of one of those businesses spoke highly of Be Bold Street Ministries staff -- Josh & Matt, whose contact information is in the pamphlet

Asked if business did have any problems, how handled?  

• 10 relational approach (asking people to leave) & call police as needed
•  3  security guard
•  8  relational approach only
•  4  other (e.g., call police & coordinate with nearby businesses; complain to mayor & council; call Be Bold Street Ministries) 

Josh said that as a result of the distribution, he had received 27 calls, and Matt had received 15.

Nicole offered tours of SHA's Immediate Needs Station to which law enforcement has 24/7 access. 

Note: the "if/then" project was not discussed, as the list of business "scenarios" was not completed until shortly before the meeting.  Sarah and Michael have since sorted the list and have distributed it to providers and law enforcement to decide whether a meeting is needed to agree on the appropriate response(s), or whether this can be accomplished through correspondence.  The deadline for a response is COB 11/20. 

Meeting Schedule:

Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, December 11, at The ARCHES Project
Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, January 8, at Ike Box, Bay Room
Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, February 12, at United Way

Collecting "Scenarios"

At the September meeting, the work group determined that, in order to coordinate services to respond to downtown businesses needing assistance with people's disruptive behaviors, it would need to better understand the types of situations involved.  Jim Vu agreed to write up some examples, and to collect examples from others and bring them to the October meeting.  At the October meeting, Jim shared the results of the SMSA survey, but didn't have any "scenarios" (written examples of problems businesses or community members want assistance with).  Tom Hoffert agreed to collect "scenarios" by October 24, but his efforts were fruitless.

Sarah Owens solicited "scenarios" through CANDO's Facebook page, but even though her post was widely viewed and shared 9 times, she also received no response.

So, Tom asked Jim and TJ Sullivan to "reach out to a cross-section of businesses" for their "scenarios", as he was going to be out of the country for eight days.

In visiting downtown businesses to invite them to CANDO meetings and share the CANDO Good Neighbor Guide, Sarah and her helpers talked to 50+ employees and owners.  Their impression from those conversations was that most businesses have issues, but nothing they haven't found a way to deal with, and rarely do they feel the need to call police.

TJ submitted a list of 10 "scenarios" shortly before the November meeting.  Most were covered by the CANDO Good Neighbor Guide.  Sarah and Michael reviewed and sorted them, sent them on to providers and law enforcement for questions and comments, and asked them to let Sarah know by COB 11/20 whether a meeting would be required. 
  

October Meeting Notes

Agenda:  1) Welcome by host Tom Hoffert 2) Introductions 3) SMSA survey results 4) Technical Training Institute by Brenda Pearson, DHS 5) Business "scenarios" by Jim Vu 6) CAHOOTS update by Kim Hanson  

Present:  Kristin Retherford, Facilitator; Moises Ramos and Bruce Donohue with UGM; Dana Shultz   with MWVCAA; Kim Hanson with United Way of the Mid-Willamette Valley; Josh Lair and Matt Maciera with Be Bold Ministries; Jim Vu with Salem Main Street Association; Tom Hoffert with the Salem Area Chamber; TJ Sullivan with Huggins Insurance; Sarah Owens and Michael Livingston with CANDO.  Not present: anyone from law enforcement.

Welcome by Hoffert.  Intros around table.  Kristin asked for comments on SMSA survey results.  She expressed concern that some respondents didn't know who to call.  Josh offered everyone his phone number and said it could be shared, that Be Bold Has worked extensively with Venti's and Great Harvest [both businesses locations] [also has contacts with US Bank, Trachshel Body & Paint, Salem Tire, RJ Dance Studio, Roy Jon Designer Goldsmiths, and Court Street landlord Eric Kittleson].  He said he doesn’t think law enforcement should be dealing with this problem, and that we, as a community, can be doing something different.  Matt said their focus is to meet people's immediate need, because the relationship component was "already there."  Be Bold coordinates with ARCHES, UGM, etc.  Josh said just talking with people changes the way you deal with them.  Michael noted that a number of responses identified behavior problems that were unlawful (not merely nuisance).  Brenda approved thinking of how to respond in terms of the risk threshold, and distinguished between relational versus transactional encounters (police encounters are transactional) and said relational is better/needed.  She said training might be offered.  Kristin said the pros are trained, and some police officers are trained, but  SMSA reps have asked for tools/resources on how to respond to various situations (implying they were not so interested in training).  Kristin did say that training would probably be "part of the mix", however.  TJ said he was surprised at the number of responses indicating a willingness to  "invest financially."  He said he wanted an if/then one-pager, and also to know how many "rooms" and chronically homeless individuals there are in Salem.  Responding to a comment, Matt said people go downtown because it is safe.  Many factors contribute to a person's condition/behavior.  For women on street, sexual assault is a reality.  Urinating and defecating on one's self is protective factor. He said that often, when he is working with someone on the street, a passer-by will say something gratuitously negative and disapproving, like get a life.  He said it's designed to and does provoke a negative response, but the underlying problem is thinking one is somehow a better or more worthy, just because one isn't living on the streets.  He said one should never underestimate what someone in dire straits now could be doing in just a few years.  It's important to look at every aspect and every facet of their lives [before judging].  Moises praised what Be Bold does and said the approach was effective.  Michael, responding to TJ, shared that there are about 1,800 homeless individuals inside Salem's UGB, roughly 700 of whom are within 1 mile of Marion Square Park.

Brenda Pearson shared a project concept to provide skill and industry training for people who've become disconnected from the workforce, what she called "Books to Boots" job training.  Kristin said she, Brenda and Moises talked about this idea together.  Sarah told Brenda she would put her in touch with Jimmy Jones to discuss. 

Jim said he wanted "tangible takeaways" from the work group but did not have the list of "scenarios" he'd promised at the last meeting.  Tom said he would work on creating a list and have it available after 10/24/19.  Kristin suggested providers and law enforcement meet to work through the list in preparation for the November meeting.  She said she would be away 10/24 to 11/17, but she would make sure to have law enforcement at the meeting to go over scenarios, which Sarah agreed to help arrange before next the meeting on November 13 at SHA.  Kristin said she would arrange for someone from the City to facilitate the November meeting.

Kim Hanson gave an update on efforts to replicate the CAHOOTS program in Salem.  She said they were looking at a program that would focus on downtown, with a $1M annual budget (same as the projected costs to operate a sobering center), and another $80 to 100K to purchase a van.  She said United Way had agreed to undertake fundraising for the van but the program would likely need to be a public-private partnership like CAHOOTS. 

Meeting Schedule:

Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, November 13, at Salem Housing Authority 
Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, December 11, at The ARCHES Project
Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, January 8, at Ike Box, Bay Room
Wednesday, 5:30 to 7p, February 12, at United Way

2019 SMSA Survey

In September 2019, the Salem Main Street Association conducted a four-question, open-ended answers survey of downtown businesses focused specifically on "issues of homelessness" downtown.  It's not known how many were asked to take the survey.  There were about 20 responses.  Consistent with business owners' comments during Downtown Homeless Solutions Task Force meetings, responses were concerned primarily with debris and potentially hazardous material left on and around the premises.  Satisfaction with police response when called to address disturbances was quite high, with only 8 of 20 respondents identifying the need for a change in City code (specifically a sit lie/camping ban), the apparent rationale being that it would "discourage congregation downtown" and thereby reduce "negative impacts."  Most respondents expressed a willingness to contribute to "effective" programs/resources for people experiencing homelessness downtown.  View the entire survey here.

September Meeting Notes

Agenda:  1) Communication Materials 2) Purpose of the group and these meetings 3) Sign-up sheet for future meeting [locations] 

Present:  Kristin Retherford, Facilitator; Moises Ramos and Bruce Donohue with UGM; Ashley Hamilton with MWVCAA; Paul Logan and Stephen Goins with NWHS; Kim Hanson with United Way of the Mid-Willamette Valley; Nicole Utz with Salem Housing Authority; Jim Vu with Salem Main Street Association (for the first 15'); Tom Hoffert with the Salem Area Chamber; Al Tandy with Salem Summit; Neal Kern and Sarah Owens with CANDO; Councilor Cara Kaser.  Not present: anyone from law enforcement.  Media: Troy Brynelson, Salem Reporter

Because Jim had to leave in 15', Kristin asked him his thoughts about the draft "one-pager."  He said it was too wordy, and needs to be pared down.  He wanted a "what to do when" quick user guide that was understandable in 30 seconds.  He agreed to provide written examples of problems experienced by his business that are not covered by the draft guide.  He said SMSA had sent out a survey asking what resources businesses feel they need to address the problems they're experiencing, and he would share the results after the survey closed on 9/13/19.  Sarah was asked to speak to the revisions she had proposed.  She said the main problem was that Salem doesn't have anything close to Clark County's resources.  Ashley agreed, saying she didn't think The ARCHES Project could agree to be "on call" for downtown without knowing how many calls there might be, etc.  Kim observed that a CAHOOTS-type of program would be a useful resource -- if Salem could swing it.  Kristin asked how many calls per week a business might call a provider for help?  No one knew.  Tom  said he only hears about the "high impact" incidents (illegal activity and 911-type calls).  Cara agreed and said the issue was how should businesses respond to nuisance (low-impact) incidents/behavior?  Paul observed that this was where the work group left off, and what we needed to return to, namely addressing how businesses should respond to nuisance (low-impact) incidents/behavior.  He said the work group needs to have that broader conversation and understand just what sort of problems businesses want help dealing with.  Kim and Sara repeated the observation that the police need to part of the conversation, along with MCRT/CORT and LEAD program reps, or at least someone who knows enough about them to contribute.  Nicole and Moises observed that, even with a "one-pager", businesses will need training on engagement strategies.  Cara pointed out that high employee turnover will make training challenging.  Nicole said that businesses need to understand the need to set boundaries, and observed that every new police officer gets a one hour training with SHA.  Moises agreed with Ashley, saying UGM has limited ability to do outreach, although UGM staff do walk around their building and engage with the businesses in their block.  He thinks businesses need to take more responsibility for developing effective responses to difficult situations.  Kristin asked what was reasonable to expect from businesses.  Nicole said without hesitation businesses should treat everyone the same, regardless of whether one thinks they're "homeless."  Paul agreed, but said there needs to be a system to back businesses up.  That's what the group needs to be trying to coordinate.  Kristin said it sounds like the guide should be "on hold" for now, that what's needed are the business "scenarios" and to pull in law enforcement to help work through them.  Paul observed that the guide could still be useful as an introduction, just without the phone numbers.  Cara, saying she was playing "devil's advocate", told the group they shouldn't assume businesses are not being kind.  Tom then took the discussion off on a war stories tangent.  With only a few minutes left, Kristin tried to touch on the other agenda items, but Tom wanted to know how the work group "plays into sit-lie"?  Kristin said she saw it as a separate issue.  Cara echoed that, saying "I see it as a tool."  Tom said he wants the community to get behind it, see sit-lie as a "win."  Stephen said a win would be sufficient resources to address and end homelessness, and that a CAHOOTS-type program would only reduce system waste, not address or end homelessness.  The meeting, having run over the appointed end time, then broke up. 

First Draft of "One-Pager" for Businesses

After the August meeting, Jimmy Jones shared the "Business Toolkit" developed by the Council for the Homeless (Clark County, Washington) with several work group members.  With CFH's permission, Kristin Retherford had staff use it as a guide in drafting a Salem version.  She shared it with the work group in an email stating, "This is not a final work product and not ready for sharing with broader audiences. Thank you for reviewing it and providing us with your comments."  This is what it looked like:

August Meeting Notes

Agenda:  1) Community Forum 2) Discussion of City’s proposed ordinance 3) Communication materials 4) Round table updates 5) Host for next meeting

Present:  Kristin Retherford, Facilitator; Dan Clem, Moises Ramos and Bruce Donohue with UGM; Jimmy Jones and Ashley Hamilton with MWVCAA; Paul Logan with NWHS; Kim Hanson with United Way of the Mid-Willamette Valley; Hazel Patton with Salem Main Street Association; Gabby Gassido with the Salem Area Chamber; Nicole Utz with Salem Housing Authority; Neal Kern and Sarah Owens with CANDO. Not present: anyone from law enforcement.

Kristin said the five other business reps had other engagements and Councilor Kaser had a family emergency.  Nicole, Ashley and Kim gave a brief report on their research on Eugene's CAHOOTS (Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets) program.  Plagiarized from various sources on the web:

CAHOOTS is a non-law enforcement system of six well-marked mobile response vans teamed with a specially-trained firefighter-EMT and peer support specialist dispatched through both 911 and non-emergency channels.  It provides mobile crisis intervention 24/7 in the Eugene-Springfield Metro area. (Non-criminal crises involving people who are homeless, disoriented, intoxicated, mentally ill, or enmeshed in an escalating dispute.) It  dispatched through the Eugene police-fire-ambulance communications center -- only, no direct line, no email.  Within the Springfield urban growth boundary it's dispatched through the Springfield non-emergency number.  

Each team consists of a medic (either a nurse or an EMT) & a crisis worker (who has at least several years experience in the mental health field). The team provides immediate stabilization in case of urgent medical need or psychological crisis, assessment, information, referral, advocacy & (in some cases) transportation to the next step in treatment.  The range of services offered include crisis counseling, suicide prevention, assessment and intervention, conflict resolution and mediation, grief and loss, substance abuse, housing crisis, first aid and non-emergency medical care, resource connection and referrals, transportation to services.  CAHOOTS is working with Olympia, Washington; Denver, Colorado; New York; Indianapolis, Indiana; Portland and Roseburg, Oregon; and   Oakland, CA.  It employs 40+, has annual budget of ~$2M (w/ vehicles) and is expanding. 

Other points about CAHOOTS made during the meeting: CAHOOTS keeps a database of all contacts. Eugene has a detox center.  All CAHOOTS transactions are voluntary but the team does answer 'unwanted person' calls.  Eugene doesn't have a sit-lie ordinance, just a camping ban.  Dan told the group he didn't want to talk about sit-lie, that he wants a "bright line" between sit-lie and the effort to build trust.  He asked the group rhetorically, "How does sit-lie build trust?"  Bruce told the group that he'd lived on streets for several decades 15 years ago.  Kristin asked what the difference was between CAHOOTS and UGM's Search & Rescue team.  Dan said UGM was a relationship service, not EMT (like CAHOOTS), and its goal was to build relationships over the long-term versus addressing a crisis situation.  Hazel said businesses want to know whom to contact.  Kristin told a story to illustrate that when problems happen inside a business, an unwanted person can be trespassed, but outside there is "nothing we can do."  Sarah and Dan demurred, saying the police can and do respond effectively to disturbances "all the time."  Kristin asked about identifying NWHS "iCarol" database-powered hotline as a point of contact for businesses.  Paul said only after services have been coordinated, a decision tree made, and expectations agreed to.  Expectations that cover everyone.  Providers have to agree on the appropriate POC and how calls should be funneled.  He said the NWHS hotline is available, but work is required before it can be a POC.  In particular, providers need to know when the police want to be called in.  And, what happens when "rules of engagement" (which apply to all visitors/customers, etc.) are broken.  The City also needs a plan for cleaning up after someone does leave (it's a public health issue).  Ashley said that AJ (Vagabond Brewing) doesn't ask people to leave because he doesn't have anything better to offer them, and he wants to be able to offer them something if he's going to ask them to move on.  Kristin told a story about how Al Tandy spent all morning with a trespass and cleanup problem.  She said she would like at the next meeting to talk about Paul's decision tree, how it would work, who should respond, etc.  Kim said the group would need to consider (in re sit-lie) how various "solutions " will affect the protocols.  She said sit-lie had costs (which Kristin denied) that needed to be taken into consideration along with alternative approaches (e.g., CAHOOTS).  She said United Way would like to invest in successful models (implying sit-lie was not a successful model).  Kristin said the City was in the process of calculating the cost to the City of dealing with "the homeless problem."  She said preliminary calculations put costs at around $1M/qtr.  Dan asked if participation in the work group was a tacit endorsement of sit-lie.  KR said no, the start of the group at the same time sit-lie was being reintroduced was just unfortunate timing.  She said there had been a spike in complaints last spring.   Discussion turned to the purpose of the forum.  Kristin said Jim Vu had asked for the forum.  She said that businesses wanted to know what resources were available.  Sarah cautioned against thinking a forum could provide businesses with enough information to allow them to act as some kind of resource navigators, because the "system" is very complex and not well coordinated.  Jimmy asked about the decision to have a moderator ask questions but not the audience.  Kristin said she was concerned not to put providers "on the spot" about sit-lie.  She denied that the City was concerned that providers would say they can't endorse sit-lie.  When asked how a 2-hour evening forum to share resources jived with Hazel's statement that businesses want a one-pager, Hazel said that businesses "want to know something is going to happen."  Kristin asked the group if the main problem with the forum proposal was the connection with sit-lie and Dan said yes.  She asked if sit-lie were not a part of the forum, would he participate and Dan said yes.  Kristin said she sees the forum as about the entire community, not just downtown. Kim suggested it should be focused on the needs of downtown.  

Kristin summarized meeting as, do the forum separate it from sit-lie and after the work group has developed resources tailored to the stated needs of businesses.  At the next meeting, look at a decision tree and expectations. 

Community Forum Planning and Sit-Lie

On August 1, Urban Development Department Director and work group facilitator Kristin Retherford emailed a select group of social service providers to ask them to participate in a "a community forum to share information on services, initiatives, and issues surrounding homelessness" to be held Wednesday, August 21, at Loucks Auditorium at the Library.  She wrote, "The structure would be a panel, with a moderator who would ask panelists questions.  Key panelists could include:

UGM – information on current services and update on new shelter

ARCHES – information on current services and update on new improvements and services

HOAP – information on current services

City – information on proposed ordinance

Housing Authority – update on housing projects and HRAP

Main Street – information on what they hear from downtown businesses and property owners

Mid-Willamette Homeless Initiative – update on work plan and development of a local CoC

United Way – information on tiny home project

Center for Hope and Safety – information on services and HOPE Plaza project"

Retherford wrote that the presentations "would take 45 minutes to an hour. The moderator would also be prepared with a few other questions that may be of community interest...The structure would not include questions from the audience, but participants, city staff, and Councilors in attendance could be available in the lobby and the auditorium for audience questions for thirty minutes following the panel discussion."  She asked for "availability, questions and feedback."

Based on the response received, Retherford rescheduled the forum for September 4, and proposed a "two-part panel. The first part would include service providers who would share information and updates on programs, projects, and services and business or property owners about challenges,experiences, and needs.  Panel members would then be switched out for a new panel potentially of City staff who could speak to City issues,trauma informed policing, LEAD, the proposed ordinance, and Q&A. The first panel would only be asked questions by the moderator. We are now looking at taking the proposed ordinance to Council on September 23."  This proposal would be discussed at the August meeting the next day, she wrote.

By the end of the meeting on August 14 it would be clear that most if not all the social services providers were uncomfortable participating in a forum at which sit-lie would be discussed because they did not want to appear to be endorsing sit-lie.  In the end, UGM would decide to host the forum but  not participate on the panel.  The City ultimately held three forums on sit-lie.  "City Fumbles Sit-Lie Forum", "Sit-Lie Loses at 2d Forum", "Call Sit-Lie Round 3 a Draw." Also see "City Schedules Sit-Lie Jr Round 3" (for the cartoon version). 

June Meeting Notes and Related

The work group, which met for the first time on June 25, was not initially referred to as the Downtown Good Neighbor Partnership.  For a description of events surrounding the work group's formation, see the CANDO Archive blog post, "City Scrambling to Save Son of Sit-Lie." 

The invitation-only first meeting was held at the Urban Development Department.  Michael Livingston and I asked Kristin Retherford if we could attend just to observe, and were asked not to come to the first meeting, because its primary goal was to obtain invitees frank opinions as to the purpose and goals of the work group away from the public eye.  When it appeared at the meeting that UGM had brought additional reps, Kristin had Neal email us that we could attend, but by then it was too late.  

Present: Kristin Retherford, Facilitator; Dan Clem, Moises Ramos and Bruce Donohue with UGM; Ashley Hamilton with MWVCAA; Tom Hoffert with the Salem Area Chamber;  the owner of Glance Optics & Eyewear (330 Court Street) and others unknown.  Not present: anyone from NWHS or law enforcement.

Asked for meeting highlights, CANDO Chair Neal Kern wrote in an email, "Based on Kristen's comments the group will be trying to generate ideas, but not making decisions, for addressing homelessness in the downtown area in a less public environment than the task force meetings from last year.  Conversations focused on a service model in Eugene called CAHOOTS affiliated with an organization called the White Dove Clinic."

Emails from Kristin a couple of weeks after the meeting described it thusly: 

During the meeting the group talked about the importance of accountability.  UGM staff talked about the role this plays in their own operations as did Ashely [Hamilton] from ARCHES.  I posed the question of what this would look like more broadly, and if a behavior-related ordinance is an example of what they meant by accountability.  When many answered yes, I then posed the question of what that might look like and put some options on the table for their consideration such as:  daytime vs. all the time, warnings vs. citations, how many warnings before someone would be trespassed from the downtown, if they were trespassed and then excluded from the downtown what kind of service barrier would this be, what if people were trespassed or excluded from the public right of way, but could still visit service providers and enter an exclusion zone for the purpose of seeking shelter, meals, or other services from a provider.  We also talked about CAHOOTS, the need for better communication tools for the businesses, and the need for more shelter. Additionally, we talked about the work ARCHES and UGM staff are doing to reach out to downtown campers to get them up and out of doorways before businesses opened.  Police staff was unable to make it to this particular meeting so we didn’t get into a discussion about LEAD.  Additionally, updates were given on constructions projects that will result in more service capacity at ARCHES and the future UGM building.

However, asked whether there was at this first meeting any mention of revisiting a sit-lie/camping ban or other "enforcement" measure, Neal wrote in an email, "There was no specific mention of sit/lie.  One business owner spoke briefly on a vagrancy ordinance but did not specify what that would entail and there was not much follow up discussion on that topic."  Dan also denied there was any discussion of sit-lie.

A couple of weeks after the meeting, news broke that City Council would be considering revisiting a sit-lie/camping ban at its July 22d meeting.  See "Son of Sit-Lie Returns."  In response to negative media reports, the City reported that, "The City has initiated collaboration meetings between staff, Salem Police Department, service providers, and downtown business and property representatives to provide updates on efforts and improve communication between parties. This informal group is...intended to function as the good-neighbor partnership described in [Downtown Homeless Solutions Task Force] Recommendation [3]."  (See DHSTF Rec #3 here.)  After this, the group was called the Good Neighbor Partnership.

On July 22, Kristin emailed five work group members saying, "At the Partnership meeting we had in June, there was some discussion about holding a community forum where service providers could talk about projects and services, where businesses could talk about their experience, and where the City and SPD could speak about what we are doing and/or challenges we are experiencing. The proposed [sit-lie] ordinance was pulled from tonight’s agenda at Councilor Andersen’s request as he is not in town and Council rules allow for items to be rescheduled at an absent councilor’s request. It will likely be rescheduled for September.  If at all possible, I think it would be great to hold a community forum in late August. Do you think this is feasible?"

At the end of July, Kristin emailed the entire work group saying, "At the August meeting, we will be discussing the proposed [sit-lie] ordinance as well as an FAQ for businesses, and the possibility of hosting a community forum with a panel discussion to share information."