Some Interfaith Sanctuary opponents show what they’re really opposed to: homeless people
At another marathon session of the Boise Planning and Zoning Commission, people opposed to Interfaith Sanctuary’s move to State Street brought up a litany of objections to the move.
It would interfere with a nearby canal. It would impact wetlands along the Greenbelt. It would clog State Street. It would lead to more vehicle-pedestrian crashes and fatalities. It would overwhelm the bus system, with the thinly veiled suggestion that “fare-paying patrons” wouldn’t ride the bus if Interfaith Sanctuary residents were on the bus.
There was a suggestion that the existence of the shelter would increase encampments and public defecation, ignoring the fact that a shelter would actually mitigate tent camps and that a lack of shelter would lead to more encampments.
One argued that it would offend the ears of residents in the Veterans Park neighborhood with the sound of all those sirens from police cars, fire trucks and ambulances responding nonstop to the new shelter.
Some complained about too few parking spots, apparently unaware that many homeless people are without cars.
With so many and such nonsensical reasons for opposing the shelter, it became clear Monday night that what opponents really oppose is the mere existence of homeless people. They want them out of sight, out of mind.
Most importantly, they don’t want them in their backyard.
Boise Planning and Zoning Commission members held their second meeting of public testimony Monday night, still with no decision regarding a conditional use permit for a new Interfaith Sanctuary shelter at 4306 W. State St., a former Salvation Army thrift store and office. The Planning and Zoning Commission will resume the hearing Monday.
Some of the arguments presented so far only serve to undermine legitimate concerns some neighbors and business owners have brought forth, such as the size of the shelter.
The shelter would serve up to 205 people 24 hours a day. The existing Interfaith Sanctuary shelter on River Street can serve 164, though Interfaith now is serving 245 men, women and children by housing some in a Boise hotel during the pandemic.
With growth and with recent news that Boise is the second-least affordable city in North America, when housing prices are compared with median income, that need is likely to grow.
There will be negative effects associated with living near a homeless shelter no matter where it goes. If Interfaith Sanctuary had found another location somewhere else, we’d be having the same debate with different neighbors.
Should Interfaith Sanctuary’s State Street shelter be smaller and house fewer people? Perhaps. But what’s the right number? Is it 150 people? Is it 100? Would neighbors welcome a shelter with 50 people? What then of the dozens, possibly hundreds of other people who are turned away and left without shelter?
If we don’t provide services and shelter, that’s when you get tent cities. That’s the last thing we want.
And who else is stepping up to provide other, smaller shelters, as some have suggested? Certainly not the state of Idaho. Certainly not Ada County, whose commissioners cut funding for the Housing First initiative New Path. And where would those smaller shelters go? How about Meridian or Eagle? Would neighbors in those locations welcome a shelter in their neighborhoods?
Interfaith Sanctuary Executive Director Jodi Peterson-Stigers and board chairman Andy Scoggins said they looked for other locations but could find none that were suitable. It’s either this location or no Interfaith Sanctuary. I tend to believe them. I certainly don’t want to find out.
Major kudos to Planning and Zoning Commission members for making sure everyone has their say. This issue is scheduled for at least one more meeting after two previous meetings. It’s been an exhaustive and exhausting process, but no one can claim at the end of the day that their voice wasn’t heard.
In the end, legitimate issues can be worked out.
Some of the objections, though, showed that what opponents simply want is to zone out homeless people.
