When St. Paul announced it had found a building on Marshall Avenue to house homeless residents and others known to police and emergency services for repeated incidents, some neighbors protested the “Familiar Faces” initiative.
Opposition to the conversion of St. Christopher’s Place, Catholic Charities’ low-cost rooming house, into a city-owned, 30- to 35-unit serviced facility has unfolded on two fronts, with some opposing the use of federal housing and Questioning COVID relief funding. and others opposed eliminating the minimum distance requirement from another group home with “supportive housing.”
In April, St. Paul College sent a letter of interest to Catholic Charities to acquire the property on Marshall Ave. 268, which is across the street from their campus, and convert it into a student housing cooperative. Had it been successful, the college would have become the only Minnesota State college or university in the metro to offer student housing, according to a college spokesperson, who noted that student surveys have revealed high levels of housing instability.
Catholic Charities then solicited potential buyers and received a competing letter of intent from the city. The nonprofit chose the city’s proposal and applied for a conditional use permit to support the “Familiar Faces” initiative.
“This alternative plan would meet the needs of 71 students experiencing housing instability, align with the community’s vision and promote educational and economic growth in the area,” local resident Eric Scott said in a written statement Friday declaration. “Yet it was completely ignored in favor of a plan that met with widespread neighborhood opposition and appears to prioritize expediency over thoughtful decision-making.”
The mayor’s office hopes to sign a purchase agreement with Catholic Charities before the end of the year and complete the $2.5 million purchase of the building in early 2025 before making $3.6 million in improvements. To do that, city officials had hoped the City Council would agree to set aside $6.8 million in HOME-ARP grant money, which is federal funding obtained through HUD.
Deputy Mayor Jaime Tincher, who has been heavily involved in the “Familiar Faces” effort, said 25 people make up about half of the hundreds of mental health evaluations that Ramsey County District Court judges order each year in criminal cases to ask. These “frequent flyers” are tying up emergency responders and hospital beds and are in dire need of housing, therapy and other intensive services, she said.
“We have the initial staffing to implement the ‘Familiar Faces’ concept, but the physical location where we can provide that intensive care and housing, that is the next step in the process,” Tincher told council on Wednesday that efforts to to design and fund efforts with partners going back ten years.
Council vote postponed
Meanwhile, the federal landscape around supporting housing for the homeless could soon change, given the new presidential administration coming up in January.
“I’m just going to be very candid,” said Tincher, who urged an immediate council vote. “I’m really concerned about what’s going to happen at the federal level.”
Instead, after an emotional discussion that lasted more than an hour, the council voted Wednesday to postpone a decision until their next meeting, Nov. 20.
“One of the things I’m struggling with with this vote is the unanswered questions surrounding programming costs,” said Councilwoman Anika Bowie, who said she has received limited information from Ramsey County’s “Heading Home Ramsey” homelessness initiative. which Tincher chairs. “I haven’t had a chance to meet the management of ‘Familiar Faces’ yet. … I don’t know how much involvement there has been in the community.”
Bowie, who represents the area, added that contact with neighbors is lacking.
“The Executive Director of Summit-University (Planning Board) was not informed of this development project surrounding the purchase,” she added. “They were informed of the zoning change. … Their members were not even aware of this vote that we are going to have today.”
Bowie initially asked to continue the council discussion in mid-December so she would have more time for community activities. Tincher told the council Wednesday that a delay could jeopardize the purchase, a concern echoed by council President Mitra Jalali and others.
Council members also expressed concern that they were asked to set aside funds for a specific location, rather than for general housing efforts, before zoning aid had been granted.
Destination meeting Thursday
On Nov. 21, the St. Paul Planning Commission’s zoning committee will likely make a recommendation on whether to support a conditional use permit for the “Familiar Faces” facility, including eliminating the required minimum separation distance between the building and the following supportive housing. facility: Arrigoni East, a state-supported group home on Summit Avenue that serves men who have completed a treatment program. Another group home, The Retreat Sober Living, is also located on Summit Avenue.
The full planning commission is expected to consider the issue on December 6. Given the level of community opposition, an appeal to the City Council is more than likely if the Planning Commission approves Catholic Charities’ conditional use permit, which could lead to a final decision until February.
If the zoning waiver is not granted, “we would have to find a new location, which would be a challenge,” Tincher said.
Tincher noted that research has shown that just two dozen people are responsible for about half of the criminal defendants who appear in court over and over again in the city, but never appear in court because of their mental health conditions.
In 2021, Ramsey County District Court judges ordered more than 780 competency assessments for criminal defendants, 73% of whom were deemed incompetent to stand trial due to mental illness, Tincher said. In 2019, 25 defendants were responsible for 46% of those competency assessments. “Our local jails have now become a shelter for people who are suffering,” she said, and that is “played out in our ER, in our 911 calls.”
The St. Paul Police Department this year ended its mental health unit, which had housed social workers and behavioral therapists among a handful of police officers since 2018. As part of the Community Outreach and Stabilization Unit, the outreach workers would respond to police calls involving mental health or chemical dependency. “Famous faces” should take the place of these efforts.
