Chico City Council approves release of shelter crisis plan – Chico Enterprise-Record

CHICO — Chico City Council voted 6 to 1 to allow the release of the city’s shelter crisis plan by July 1, 2022.

City Attorney Vincent Ewing presented the item to council and recommended that council approve it in order to comply with a state law that requires municipalities that have declared housing crises to propose and share a plan.

“This law provides that a city that has passed a shelter crisis to build emergency housing, and in this case we built the Pallet shelter, that the city publishes a report on an annual basis,” said Ewing.

Much of the plan includes the settlement agreement between the City of Chico and the plaintiffs in Warren v. chico.

It also covers rehabilitation programs in the city and affordable and transitional housing.

Emphasis is also placed on the Palette shelter with information on the development of the shelter.

Those who spoke during the article’s public comment period said they found the plan too vague overall. Melody Proebstel said there is still a long way to go to address homelessness issues.

“I want to make sure that you are truly aware that the work to meet the needs of our homeless community members is not being done,” Proebstel said. “And the crisis plan you presented clearly does not recognize that.”

Proebstel cited issues such as dangerously high temperatures homeless people face without proper cooling centers and access to water, not just for drinking but for hygiene purposes.

“I think within the city limits it should be something that’s easily accessible for people,” Proebstel said.

Jesica Giannola said she felt the report needed more information.

“The report was really missing a lot,” Giannola said. “It really was. And it was just a big thing on the litigation, which most of us have seen by this point.”

Nichole Nava said she read the entire report, but felt it focused mainly on the required elements of the city. She added that she wanted to see more information about the results of things like transitioning out of the shelter.

Returning to the council’s discussion, Deputy Mayor Kasey Reynolds, noting that this was the first report the city has made since declaring the crisis in October, asked that staff consider public concerns to the next report.

Councilman Alex Brown was the only no.

other business

In addition to talking about the shelter crisis plan, the Chico City Council has taken the following actions:

• Police Chief Matt Madden presented his department’s annual report which highlighted crime rates as well as personnel within the department.
• The council unanimously backed a plan to add more bins in the town centre.
• Vice Mayor Reynolds proposed a ballot to define quality of life in what she said was an effort to hold council and future councils accountable. Instead, the board decided to defer to Ewing and have him do an analysis to avoid legal issues related to the Warren v. chico.

Chico City Council primarily meets at 6 p.m. on the first and third Tuesdays of the month at 421 Main St. Meetings are free and open to the public.