City of Des Moines takes first steps to tighten rules on camping in public to curb record homeless numbers
DES MOINES, Iowa — Joshua Woodworth is right at home, tucked along the banks of the Raccoon River.
“It’s a hole opening up in the ground that looks like a pyramid,” Woodworth said.
He’s called this current, small cavern cut into the limestone his residence for over a year.
“I came back to Iowa about ten years ago and I’ve been stuck along this hill ever since,” Woodworth said.
Woodworth and several neighbors have taken up residence in the woods while a few other campsites look to have recently been abandoned; a new sign posted along the tree line south of Grand Avenue may explain why.
“It means some new timeframes of some of our ordinances that are going to ask people to go to the shelter rather than continually making camp on our sidewalks, streets and other places,” Des Moines Ward 1 councilman Chris Coleman said.
On Monday, the Des Moines City Council passed the first reading of proposed changes to an existing city ordinance regarding camping on publicly owned property, bridges or viaducts. People found in violation must vacate the location immediately, have personal items removed within 24-hours and could be subject to a $50 fine, down from the previous $120 penalty.
“We’re trying to make sure there’s a process in place and we take the time and collect people’s possessions, that they’re made available to them and they don’t lose what they have if they’re willing to go to the shelters and seek services,” Coleman said.
Woodworth said he’s going to need a lot more convincing.
“This is my shelter. This is earth and what we have so I don’t need nothing else. To me it’s easier. I don’t have to afford anybody my time, effort, energy, anything I don’t want, it’s all about what I want and I feel that’s how you’re supposed to live, you know? The whole ‘normal’ thing just doesn’t fit me,” Woodworth said.
A second, major obstacle is where people like Woodworth can go when they’re told to vacate a campsite.
Data collected by Homeward Iowa shows the number of safe haven, transitional housing, emergency sheltered and unsheltered people in Des Moines have climbed since January of 2019 to record numbers in 2024. Woodworth represents the 147 who live outside, and right now most area shelters are at or near capacity.
“They better have a spot for us to go otherwise I’m going to find the nearest, coolest spot I can and be right up here,” Woodworth said.
The second reading for the changes to the ordinance is scheduled for August 5.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to who13.com.
