Fiscal Note
Funds are available within the Miscellaneous Appropriations Day Shelter and Gap Services line item of the 2016 Adopted Operating Budget.
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SUBSTITUTE - That the City of Madison will collaborate with Dane County to designate space and place personal storage lockers in downtown parking ramp(s) and/or other identified safe or reasonable locations which can be utilized by homeless persons to store their personal belongings.
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WHEREAS, since the March 31, 2013, closure of the temporary day shelter at 827 E. Washington Avenue, which provided homeless persons with access to storage lockers during shelter hours, the City of Madison and Dane County have worked together to address the unmet needs of homeless persons; and
WHEREAS, the City of Madison has funded a storage program located at the Social Justice Center at 1202 Williamson Street, but the space there is limited and the location is over one (1) mile from downtown locations where homeless persons utilize public spaces and access services and shelters; and
WHEREAS, the City of Madison created a fenced-in area outside the Madison Municipal Building to store the belongings of persons sleeping around the City-County Building, but that storage area has since closed due to a number of problems associated with it; and
WHEREAS, due to the lack of a comprehensive daytime resource center downtown offering personal storage space for homeless persons’ belongings, additional space is needed to ensure that homeless persons have the ability to safely store their personal belongings including, but not limited to, gear for sleeping on the streets; and
WHEREAS, homeless persons should not have to carry all of their belongings on their backs when they are going to work, applying for jobs, going to a doctor’s appointment or accessing other services; and
WHEREAS, disabled persons are over-represented among the homeless population, persons with disabilities are even more burdened by having to carry all their belongings on their person;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Madison will collaborate with Dane County to designate space and place personal storage lockers in downtown parking ramp(s) and/or other identified safe or reasonable locations which can be utilized by homeless persons to store their personal belongings.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the storage lockers shall be large enough to store sleeping gear and a backpack.
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the City shall work with the County and community partners to purchase and manage the lockers, with the City cost not to exceed $10,000, to be taken from direct appropriations available for Day Shelter and Gap Services. ; and,
BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED that the City shall work with the County and community partners in support of the locker program, including making the necessary changes to the City of Madison zoning code to allow for such a program, providing input on proposed locker locations and management plans, providing initial funding for the purchase of lockers as provided herein, and entering into any agreements necessary for the community partner to operate the locker program as allowed by the zoning code, with the understanding that any such operational agreement with the community partner shall be reviewed and approved by the City-County Homeless Issues Committee prior to implementation.