Tent City Residents: Where Will The City Move Them

SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – In April 2017, Councilman Lane Carter, SMD5, held a town meeting to discuss the growing concern over the numerous tents pitched by homeless residents under the Houston Harte overpass near Bryant Street. The location has come to be known as “Tent City.” Despite the short presentations from Councilman Carter, Bob Salas, Director of Neighborhood and Family Services and member of the Homeless Coalition, City Manager Daniel Valenzuela, and Police Chief Frank Carter, the City struggled to find a solution. It wasn’t until May 3, when the city council passed the first reading of an ordinance amendment that would prohibit camping on or at a municipal facility or public right-of-way in a 5-0 vote, that a solution was found. On May 16, the amendment was passed and the ordinance took effect on June 1.

In an interview, preceding the June 1st ordinance enforcement, Tracy Gonzalez, San Angelo Police Department’s (SAPD) Public Information Officer, stated that law enforcement agents would enforce the new regulation “as humanely as possible.” Furthermore, she added that the SAPD would continue to “work with partner agencies to refer homeless citizens to the resources they want/need.”  

During his April town hall meeting, Councilman Carter also informed attendees that back in January 2017, he and fellow councilwoman Lucy Gonzalez, SMD4, with the help of public housing, SAPD, and the City’s legal administration, had formed a committee to tackle the City’s newest issue. In the May 3 city council meeting, Salas not only confirmed with city officials but also reassured community members that numerous resources were available to the homeless in San Angelo. He mentioned in particular the Salvation Army, ADACCV (Alcohol & Drug Abuse Council for the Concho Valley), MHMR Workforce Solutions, PHA (Public Housing Authority) and COSA (City of San Angelo); all of which would enable “those who want or need help” to find a new living situation.

Salas explained that a peer counseling committee had been put together to help “Tent City” residents prepare for the day of the ordinance enforcement, providing them with IDs, counseling, work, and transportation if possible. 

Amanda Cruz, Deputy Director for the Housing Authority of San Angelo, helped lead the homeless coalition in this effort.

”We wanted to educate the community on the services being made available in Tom Green County for the homeless,” Cruz explained. “We would go down at least once a week to build a relationship with [the homeless] living there,” Cruz continued.

“The peer counselors [helped] guide [the homeless] to the necessary case management through the myriad of agencies that provide services to include MHMR if they have mental health issues, ADACCV for substance abuse issues, and Workforce Solutions for work related actions,” Salas explained. He also added that the PHA would help with housing assistance.

“While there is no perfect solution, the [Homeless Coalition] is doing what it can to help. Of course, it will require cooperation and desire for assistance from those in need, which is not always easy to obtain," Salas noted.

Above: Tents under the Houston Harte Expy. prior to the new ordinance taking effect (LIVE!/Photo: Cameron Niblock)

Interestingly, the majority of the 20-30 homeless, living under the underpass at any given time, did not use the services offered to them before the new enforcement took effect.

It was important to Councilman Carter and Councilwoman Gonzales, who both supported the ordinance, that people living in “Tent City” were looked after throughout the process.

“My thoughts [on the ordinance] were ‘not to be against anybody’,” Carter said, “I want to help out as many people as I can who are having a rough time.”

Carter believes that kicking residents out of their makeshift homes under the Houston Harte overpass is not the true answer. The homeless population needs help, but the homeless also need to take advantage of the resources that are made available to them.

“In a perfect world, everyone would have the help and support they need,” Gonzales said. “Unfortunately, that is not the reality of the world we live in.”  

Newly elected Mayor of San Angelo Brenda Gunter viewed the ordinance somewhat differently than Councilman Carter; Gunter believes the newly amended ordinance is “necessary for the safety and security of Tom Green County.”  

Gunter voiced concern over the growth of the homeless population in San Angelo and added, “If we [hadn’t] attacked it and [hadn’t had] a game plan it would have become a bigger and more difficult issue to control.”

Similar to a concerned woman in Councilman Carter’s town hall meeting who thought that all of the “Tent City’ homeless population is made up of drug addicts, alcoholics, and mentally impaired people,” Gunter warned, “when there are problems [in Tent City] like drug use, fires being started and prostitution, we have to take control of it, and not let it control us. The ordinance is a way for us to act accordingly.”

The new ordinance prohibits people from camping on public property not designated for camping, including municipal facilities and public right-of-ways. The ordinance began to be enforced at 10 p.m. on June 1 through 6 a.m. the following day. The ordinance will continue to be enforced between 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. on a regular bases.

Should SAPD officers make contact with homeless citizens who have not left the location, “we would most likely give a verbal warning first,” explained Officer Gonzalez.

If the warning is not obeyed, the officer may (depending on the circumstances) either issue a second warning, a citation, or make an arrest.  However, “an arrest would be the last resort,” Gonzalez explained.

Despite the quick solution to ‘Tent City’ as well as a few success stories from several residents, see here, here and here, many former ‘Tent City’ residents still seek places to live and/or ways to  get back on their feet. The City has indeed not offered many other housing options besides referring the homeless to the Salvation Army.  

As for now, these homeless residents must find a place to live that is not in ‘Tent City’ and not in a public park.