Talks on moving some suppers for the homeless from downtown Little Rock to a resource center nearly 4 miles away gained traction Wednesday, but the path to such a deal holds several obstacles, including money, space and willingness.
Elizabeth Dowell, who coordinates roughly 22 volunteer groups that have traditionally served meals under the Broadway bridge four nights a week, said she would talk to partners about moving closer to the Jericho Way Resource Center on a trial basis, but she reiterated that the groups and those they serve would independently choose whether to go.
Dowell addressed a citizen committee charged with issuing recommendations on Little Rock's proposal to limit large group meals in Little Rock's 63 city parks. The draft ordinance, a response to complaints from River Market District business owners, drew opposition from homeless advocates and prompted a deeper look at when and and where food is offered to those in need.
She ruled out a wholesale move to Springer Boulevard but said some partners may be open to the proposal and that she welcomes other suggestions for a location.
"You don't move forward, you don't grow, if you don't try new things," Dowell said after the meeting.
City Manager Bruce Moore introduced in May a measure that would require organizations or individuals to register with the city before feeding a group of 25 or more people in a city park, pay a $25 permit fee and post a $100 refundable security deposit. The ordinance also would limit how many times a group could host feedings to three per year at each of the city's parks.
The Board of Directors postponed a vote on the ordinance at the request of City Directors Kathy Webb and Dean Kumpuris, who asked for a committee of business leaders, homeless-advocacy groups and city staff members to study the matter and report to the board July 11.
The committee has zeroed in on a goal to link food with broader support. It has focused for the past two meetings almost exclusively on the Dowell-coordinated Broadway Bridge Project after concluding it was the only group that regularly serves meals to the homeless in a public park.
Construction of the new Broadway bridge, scheduled to wrap up this year, displaced the Broadway Bridge Project from under the bridge, a tract of public land that the city attorney said is part of Julius Breckling Riverfront Park. Currently, the coalition offers meals to the homeless at From His Throne Ministries on West Markham Street.
Two committee members said an agreement for the Broadway Bridge Project to try serving dinner at the homeless resource center Jericho Way or at another location could eliminate the need for an ordinance.
"If there's a willingness to try something, that would be what I would vote for [as] a recommendation from the committee," said Gabe Holmstrom, executive director of the nonprofit Downtown Little Rock Partnership.
Alan Sims, vice president of sales and services at the Little Rock Convention and Visitors Bureau, disagreed, saying the ordinance is necessary to give city officials "control" and that such a law would hold accountable other large groups that host functions in the park, such as birthday parties or family reunions.
Aaron Reddin, founder of The Van, a nonprofit that delivers food and goods to unsheltered homeless people, said Monday that meals are frequently served in other city parks but declined to elaborate specifically about where and how often.
"Some days it might be three people," said Reddin, a staunch opponent of the ordinance who has not attended a committee meeting. "Some days it may be pushing the limit. If number 26 or 27 shows up needing something to eat, we're going to be breaking the law for sharing food with them? It's preposterous.
"It's an issue with people at Riverfront Park, but [the ordinance] very easily could impact people getting food in other areas of the city."
The Broadway Bridge Project serves between 80 to 120 meals on an average night, Dowell said. The Little Rock area's homeless population is estimated at close to 1,000, with more than half living outside of shelters, according to a January count conducted by Central Arkansas Team Care for the Homeless.
Jericho Way, partially funded by Little Rock and North Little Rock, has emerged as a possible location because of case management, job counseling and other services it offers, said Jordan Johnson, the committee's chairman and a spokesman for the Clinton Presidential Center. Jericho Way also serves breakfast and lunch.
The committee tasked a four-member group with scheduling meetings with city officials and Jericho Way leadership to see whether the shift is realistic and could tie in with other services. A message left for the resource center's director was not returned.
No one at the meeting had the authority to greenlight an agreement, which would take buy-in from Jericho Way, the city and the individual volunteers who comprise the Broadway Bridge Program.
Because Jericho Way currently closes midafternoon, it would also have to rework its schedule to ensure services could be provided before or after dinner. Buses to transport people to and from the resource center, about 3 miles from the River Market District, and more staff members would be required, committee members said.
That's aside from persuading homeless people to go several miles for dinner.
"There's such opposition to that," Dowell said, noting that members of one of the volunteer groups answered "anything but Jericho Way" when asked if they wanted to remain at From His Throne, return to the bridge or go to the resource center.
Johnson said the short-term goal is to encourage people to "feel more comfortable" at Jericho Way.
"We can start that process by showing people on both sides, those serving and those who are served, that this may be a viable alternative long-term [option]," Johnson said.
Metro on 06/15/2017