When Charlottesville Assistant City Manager Sam Roman provided an update this week on the upcoming removal of people from an encampment along the Rivanna River, he mentioned a brochure that had been produced with additional information.
The two-page “Working Together On Homelessness” pamphlet includes a QR code with links to resources and includes a FAQ.
“Multiple City departments and community partners are working together to support this effort while balancing compassion, public safety, and environmental stewardship,” reads the brochure.
The FAQ has three questions including whether being homeless is a crime. The city says not on its own.
“The City responds to criminal activity or public safety concerns regardless of a person’s housing status,” reads page two.
The brochure explains people can’t stay at the camp because of health, safety, and environmental concerns as well as access issues to shared spaces. It also states that not everyone will respond to efforts to help find a new place to live.
“Acceptance of outreach is voluntary and building trust often takes time,” the brochure continues. “Teams continue to engage individuals and offer available resources.”
On July 22, the executive director of the Blue Ridge Coalition for the Homeless provided an update to fellow members of the executive committee of the Central Virginia Regional Housing Partnership. During a roundtable discussion, Shayla Washington told the group that a two-week assessment is underway.
“That effort is being spearheaded by city Councilor Jen Fleischer, and she’s also working with some staff from UVA Health and PACEM to get these surveys complete,” Washington said.
Over three dozen of those assessments had been completed by Wednesday. Washington said she was concerned misinformation has prompted some to leave the encampment early.
“Sounds like some people are kind of already displacing themselves and going to other, other sites just because they’re hearing a September 1st deadline of when to close the encampment and so they’re going other places and might be harder to find, unfortunately,” Washington said.
Washington said BRACH will continue to make sure the perspectives of people living in the encampment are reflected in the outreach.
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