9/30/2022
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The Spokesman-Review
WITH $4M GRANT, VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA TO OFFER BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES
Sheriff candidates disagree on Camp Hope response
KREM
KXLY
The Center Square
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The Spokesman-Review
WITH $4M GRANT, VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA TO OFFER BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES
By Emma Epperly
THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW
Volunteers of America plans to integrate behavioral health care into their Spokane housing programs with help from a $4 million grant announced Tuesday from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration.
With a shortage of behavioral health resources in the Spokane area, program leaders realized early in the COVID-19 pandemic they needed to provide more in-depth services for people to be successful once they get housing, said Beth McRae, director of development.
“There’s not enough resources in the community,” McRae said. “We just can’t take care of everybody in need.”
That led Volunteers of America Eastern Washington to decide to become a certified community behavioral health clinic. “We needed to start providing more in-depth services so that they could be successful in housing and stay housed,” she said.
VOA runs 15 local programs, including three shelters: Crosswalk Youth Shelter, Hope House Women’s Shelter and the Young Adult Shelter, along with a permanent supported housing program. The program will provide integrated care, meaning behavioral health clinicians will join people’s existing care teams, McRae said.
Homeless people often have a trauma that led to them losing their housing, McRae said. They also are traumatized while living on the streets, she said.
They’re used to being in survival mode, worried about where they’ll sleep that night or get their next meal, McRae said.
“Every person that is homeless right now I guarantee you is struggling with depression,” she said. “I don’t know how you couldn’t.”
Once housed, it’s quiet, McRae said. People spend more time alone and it can be difficult to adjust, she said. They also may discover chronic health issues they didn’t realize they had until they were in a safe place away from the stressors of homelessness, McRae said.
At that point, they need to work on processing and healing their traumas in order to move toward their goals, McRae said.
“That kind of disappears, and then the next thing they need to work on maybe is the trauma of being homeless or the trauma of what causes homelessness,” McRae said. “That’s where we need behavioral health care to really address those issues so people can really move forward in a healthy way.”
After deciding to add behavioral health to their services, VOA did an assessment to figure out what people in their programs need. Then they reached out to existing community providers for advice, McRae said.
In January, VOA hired Esa Lariviere to be the vice president of integrated care. They applied for the SAMHSA grant, which they received on Sept. 29.
Over the next year, the program will hire additional clinicians, medical personnel and a director of medicine. Those providers will join people’s existing care teams that often include a peer support specialist and case manager.
The program will complete all its new licensing requirements with the department of health, McRae said. By the end of the first year, they hope to have about 100 participants receiving behavioral health services.
Those people will largely be in the permanent supportive housing program, McRae said. The supported housing program currently has about 220 people in it, she added.
About 2,700 people use VOA services each year, but not all of them have a need for behavioral health care; some just stop in for a bus pass or use shelters in transitional periods of their lives, she said.
Each year the program should add about 100 participants, with the goal of 500 people receiving behavioral health care by the end of the four-year grant.
Becoming a certified community behavioral health clinic will allow VOA to bill insurers for their services, which helps the program be sustainable, McRae said. There’s also the option for an extension on the SAMHSA grant after the initial four years, she said. The new certifications will also make VOA eligible for a slew of new grants, McRae added.
The nonprofit also relies on local donors and community fundraising. Emma Epperly can be reached at (509) 459-5122 or at emmae@spokesman. com.
Sheriff candidates disagree on Camp Hope response
Men running to replace Knezovich clash on his emergency proclamation request
By Colin Tiernan
THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW
The Spokane County commissioners on Tuesday proclaimed an emergency at Camp Hope, a move they say will allow them to establish a coordinated regional effort aimed at closing the homeless encampment and moving its residents indoors before the arrival of winter.
The commissioners unanimously approved the resolution at the request of Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, but the original ask came from Brian Schaeffer, Spokane’s interim emergency management director and fire chief.
At a Tuesday news conference at Spokane City Hall, city and county leaders presented a united front when discussing the emergency proclamation. Knezovich, Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward and Spokane County Commissioner Mary Kuney all said they believe clearing the tent city before snowfall is in the best interest of the campers and the East Central neighborhood. The city plans to house many of Camp Hope’s 450 residents inside its new homeless shelter on Trent Avenue.
The commissioners during their Tuesday meeting praised Knezovich for recommending the emergency proclamation. The sheriff, who will retire at the end of the year, became a central figure in the Camp Hope saga in September when he said he planned to forcibly remove people from the encampment along Interstate 90 by mid-October. He has since pushed back that deadline at Woodward’s request.
“I’m just thankful that you took it upon yourself to do this,” Kuney said. “We are all here to support you.”
Not everyone agrees the emergency proclamation is a good idea.
Wade Nelson, a Republican running for Spokane County sheriff, said after the news conference that he believes his former boss has “overstepped” when it comes to Camp Hope. He called the emergency proclamation and threats to clear out the encampment “a power move.”
“It looks like we’re just pandering,” Nelson said, adding he doesn’t see how the proclamation is helping the community.
Undersheriff John Nowels, Nelson’s opponent, stressed he believes Knezovich is working with the Woodward administration, not alone. He said he believes making the proclamation was the right decision.
“This is no time for politics,” the undersheriff said. “This is about getting a problem solved.”
Nowels also said he believes the sheriff is fulfilling his duty and standing up for his constituents in the East Central neighborhood by pushing for Camp Hope’s closure. Knezovich has endorsed Nowels, who is also running as a Republican.
“The sheriff has an obligation to serve the citizens,” Nowels said. “We’re just saying enough is enough.”
Nelson also pointed out that the city and county haven’t explained in detail what the emergency proclamation will entail.
“They don’t know what they’re doing yet,” he said. Schaeffer has said, by allowing the county to open its emergency operations center at 1610 N. Rebecca St., the proclamation will help local jurisdictions collaborate instead of launching independent responses to Camp Hope. He has said the proclamation is needed in order to direct Camp Hope’s residents to shelter, find a storage facility for their belongings, provide security for service providers and physically clean the property.
The proclamation will also allow the county to bypass competitive bidding requirements and make funding available more quickly.
Nowels disagreed, saying he thinks the city and county have a clear idea of what they’re doing with the emergency proclamation.
“There is a plan,” he said, “otherwise we wouldn’t be standing in front of cameras.”
The county commissioners earlier this month decided to sue the Department of Transportation and attempt to get a judge’s permission to clear the property. The department has said the lawsuit, and the looming threat of similar legal attacks from the city of Spokane, is damaging the parties’ ability to work together and making it harder to help Camp Hope’s residents.
In a Monday news release, the Department of Transportation said it wouldn’t collaborate on the emergency operations center unless the county drops the lawsuit.
“We have repeatedly asked local government to proactively partner with us on this important work, but have instead been met with legal proceedings, arbitrary deadlines and misinformation,” the Department of Transportation, Department of Commerce and Washington State Patrol wrote.
Nowels said he believes the lawsuit has value as a motivational tool while Nelson said he thinks the county should stop threatening to sue the state over Camp Hope.
“If I were the sheriff, I would drop the lawsuit,” Nelson said.
Knezovich said Tuesday the state should be meeting with the county regardless of the lawsuit.
“I’m tired of all the finger pointing on this issue,” he said. Colin Tiernan can be reached at (509) 459-5039 or at colint@spokesman.com.
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KREM
This is the first step in city and county officials' plan to clear out the homeless camp near I-90 by Nov. 15, 2022.
Jewels Helping Hands and I-90 homeless campers react to emergency operations center
SPOKANE, Wash. — Spokane County and city leaders announced the activation of an emergency operations center (EOC) for people experiencing homelessness in Spokane and surrounding areas on Tuesday.
This is the first step in their plan to clear out the homeless camp near I-90 by Nov. 15, 2022. The land is owned by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).
Mayor Nadine Woodward, Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich and County Commissioner Mary Kuney believe the homeless camp near I-90 can be cleared out in three to four weeks because of the EOC.
"It gives us the flexibility to purchase items immediately based on the emergency proclamation," Knezovich said.
Knezovich will lead the emergency management team at the EOC. The team will execute plans to move people out of the homeless camp and into housing.
Woodward said the imminent drop in temperatures was one contributing factor to opening the EOC.
"The sudden shift in temperatures with near-freezing overnight lows [on Monday night] and the impending winter weather has only added to the urgency that we are all feeling about the overall public health and safety of the individuals inside that encampment," Woodward said.
The purpose of the EOC is to bring regional resources and agencies under one roof.
The EOC is also where all the major decisions regarding the I-90 homeless camp will be made. Local officials will use the space to execute plans to move people out of the homeless camp and into housing. That plan includes turning the Trent Shelter into a navigation center where regional resources will connect people to services that will meet their individual housing needs.
"It's basically bringing people inside in a temporary situation, connected to services, meals, showers, restrooms and then having them have a temporary space while they are waiting, eventually, for the housing options that will come their way rather than being in a field, in a tent with frozen ground and snow falling around them," Woodward said.
WSDOT sent a letter to the city on Monday stating the county's EOC is not needed because the state is already implementing all of the county's proposed actions.
Woodward said regional leaders will work every day to make sure there are enough beds available at the Trent Shelter and other facilities to take in people waiting for housing.
Residents can expect daily updates from the emergency management team about the progress being made on moving people out of the camp, according to Knezovich.
Jewels Founder Julie Garcia says people at the camp are nervous and on edge as the November clearing date approaches.
Former Gonzaga basketball star Adam Morrison inducted into Inland Northwest Sports Hall of Fame
SPOKANE, Wash. — City and county leaders say rising crime and dropping temperatures have made clearing the I-90 homeless encampment an urgent priority. They believe it can be done by November 15 this year.
"We are going to solve this issue not in a year, not in eight months, but in a very short order, within 3 to 4 weeks," Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich said.
On Tuesday, Spokane County activated an emergency operations center to bring resources and agencies under one roof. The next step is turning the Trent Shelter into a navigation center where people will be connected to services and housing options.
"I'm a firm believer that people shouldn't be sleeping outside," Jewels Helping Hands Founder Julie Garcia said. "The sheriff is a firm believer that people shouldn't be sleeping outside, but how we get there is what matters."
Garcia says that outreach work is already being done at the camp, and so far, they've already moved 349 people off of the lot and into "humane solutions, not just a bus ticket to some city somewhere."
Garcia says it will take more than a few weeks to get the remaining 442 campers into shelters and housing.
"They want a timeline," Garcia said. "I think the first 200ish folks are going to be before the end of the year. I can't guarantee that but that is better than saying yeah by November 15th."
Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward says there will be enough space at shelters for everyone at the camp, but Garcia remains skeptical.
"Four weeks from now, that Trent shelter, no matter who runs it, is going to be full because we have hundreds of people downtown that we're forgetting about when we're talking about homeless services," Garcia said.
On Tuesday, Spokane County officially declared an emergency, not just for people living at the camp, but the surrounding neighbors and businesses. The Spokane Police Department (SPD) says violent crime is up 114% within a quarter mile radius of the camp. Property crime has shot up 80%.
Wednesday, the East Spokane Business Association is holding a press conference to discuss how families and businesses have suffered over the last 10 months living near the camp. They say the camp needs to be gone before Thanksgiving.
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KXLY
Posted: October 25, 2022 6:54 PM Updated: October 25, 2022 10:30 PM byRania Kaur
SPOKANE, Wash. — Two Republican candidates want your vote in District 4 to represent parts of Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake, Spangle and Latah.
Incumbent Mary Kuney and her opponent Paul “Brian” Noble are on the ballot. Kuney has served as a Spokane County Commissioner for the past five years, and Noble is the executive pastor at Valley Assembly Church. He also periodically served as a sheriff’s chaplain for more than a decade.
“My priorities are public safety, small businesses, and the citizens,” Kuney said.
Brian Noble was motivated to run because of his grandchild.
“We need to have great leadership at our county at the local level to ensure that our freedoms and our next generation have a great place to live that I’ve enjoyed to live,” Noble said.
Public safety is the biggest priority for both candidates, but both have different opinions on how it should be handled.
“It’s really for us, as county commissioners, it’s what are the things that need to be funded, and how can we help those in those areas,” Kuney said. “Really it’s having that collaboration between the citizens and the sheriff’s department, is going to be I think.”
Noble, however, has a plan in place he believes could make a difference in public safety.
“What do we need to do? We need to make sure that our law enforcement is funded, but not only just giving them dollars, but also giving them leadership and courage to step out and do the things of enforcing our law,” Noble said.
Noble also criticized what he says was a delayed response to the growing number of homeless people at Camp Hope. He wants to address the problem by either finding beds in the shelter system, tackling drug use with treatment, or laying down the law.
“If people don’t want to take those two choices and they’re just choosing to be homeless, and they’re choosing to live like that, then we need to enforce the laws that are on the books, so that people can make wise choices in their life,” he said.
Kuney is defending the decision she voted on in support of the sheriff.
“We’re seeing action happen, we’re seeing conversations happen that haven’t happened before, so I think it is what it is, and we need to have these conversations before winter hits,” Kuney said.
RELATED: Sheriff vows to use bus tickets, arrests to clear Camp Hope
She’s relying on the Trent shelter to be able to expand and handle the homeless crisis as winter approaches.
“Nobody wants to see a confrontation, and so if we can make this happen and be able to get people into shelter space, so you know, we can navigate the system for them, that’s going to be the best case scenario,” she said. “And it may take a little bit more time, but with winter coming, we don’t have a lot of time.”
With similar yet different approaches, your vote will determine who will make future decisions for District 4 of Spokane County.
For more information on Mary Kuney, click HERE.
For more information on Paul “Brian” Noble, click HERE.
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The Center Square
Camp Hope formed in Spokane on Washington State Department of Transportation land near Interstate 90 last December and has grown to include 400-600 people. Local officials are meeting with state entities to discuss the plans of Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich to empty the camp by Nov. 10 because it poses a "chronic nuisance."
Photo courtesy of Spokane County Sheriff's Office
(The Center Square) – Government agencies in Spokane have activated an Emergency Operations Center to get occupants of a large homeless encampment into shelter before the onset of winter.
“Communities that are most successful at decommissioning camps use an organized, indoor navigation system approach to identifying housing and connecting people to supportive services,” Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward explained in a statement Tuesday.
“Moving out of the elements is a safer, healthier, and more humane way to connect to services and relieves the pressure on the neighborhood around the camp.”
She said the partnership of agencies demonstrates a united regional commitment to improving the situation for campers and the surrounding neighborhood alike.
The hub of emergency operations will be the Trent Resource and Assistance Center that opened in August. People will be placed at the facility leased by the city while long-term housing arrangements are made, said Woodward.
Under the new plan, the Trent shelter will be the hub for assessment, service supports, and housing connections. The facility will offer a 24-hour climate-controlled environment with overnight sleeping capacity up to 400 individuals. Additional sites will be used to add overnight space as needed.
About five dozen individuals have already moved from the camp to the Trent shelter, according to city officials.
Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich declared several weeks ago that he planned to decommission Camp Hope by mid-November. The camp is sited on Washington Department of Transportation land in East Central.
“Expecting better than enduring life in a field through harsh winter weather is an investment in the individuals struggling with homelessness,” he stated in joint city/county release Tuesday.
The new plan addresses the four basic benchmarks identified in legislation that authorizes funding for local communities with encampments on state right-of-way. Toward that end, Spokane will offer shelter space and services to displaced individuals, provide secure storage for their personal belongings, provide safety and security for people providing assessments and services to displaced individuals, and support restoration and cleanup of the camp site.
Officials said that their coordinated efforts will provide imminent relief to the surrounding neighborhood.
Calls for police service in the area have gone up 75.7% from when the camp opened last December while fire services have gone from 7 last year to 161 so far this year. Violent crime in the quarter-mile radius from the encampment have risen 114% and property crime has increased 81% in 2022 when compared to the average of the three previous years during the same period.
“Spokane has places to go to get out of the elements and the resources available to meet individual underlying needs associated with homelessness,” said Spokane County Commissioner Mary Kuney in the news release.
Arrangements are now being made to bring temporary portable office space and large storage containers to the Trent shelter. The additional office space is intended to provide privacy during conversations about what services people need and allow for some administrative functions to move out of the sleeping areas.
Large storage containers, which have been used successfully in previous operations, will keep individual overflow items that exceed the size of bedside storage.
Additional beds will be assembled at the shelter within the next couple of weeks to accommodate an influx of new guests. Supplies will also be inventoried and ordered to accommodate the needs of people moving in.
Arrangements are also being finalized to provide transportation from the camp to indoor locations.
According to the news release, the group of government leaders will meet multiple times per week to manage resource needs, evaluate progress, and troubleshoot challenges that arise.
The separate city and county chronic nuisance processes sought by Knezovich, Police Chief Craig Meidl and the county commissioners to disband the camp are still in the pipeline.