Will Bozeman Give a Man a Home?
Bozeman’s Lack of Homeless Shelter Strains Nearby Cities
By David Nolt, 4-17-07
This past January, Bozeman’s homeless issue hit the headlines when a U-Haul employee found a man frozen to death in a company truck. The death shocked the community and seemed to galvanize local conversation around the need for a lasting solution to its problem of homelessness in the self-proclaimed “Most Livable Place.”
For whatever reasons, Bozeman is a city without a shelter. Downtown business owners are worried a shelter will mean more and more panhandlers downtown, which they feel could be bad for business. One proprietor begged the question, “Is it really our problem?”
It is not often a discussed fact that Bozeman has a history of escorting — or “floating” — transients and the homeless out-of-town, most commonly via the Greyhound bus to proxy shelters in the nearby cities of Butte and Helena.
Butte—a city almost exactly the same size as Bozeman—has operated a shelter for 31 years. Rachael Freeman is the daughter of Frank Cotton, director of the Butte Rescue Mission. She says the Mission still receives a consistent flow of visitors who cannot find resources in Bozeman.
Bozeman police point people in Butte’s Mission direction, which serviced over 90,000 nights last year.
“Anytime you get people from other communities that are also seeking services here, it puts somewhat of a strain on us,” Freeman explains. “We don’t mind. It just takes our resources and stretches them a little further to make sure we have enough for everybody.”
Freeman talks to many Mission visitors who went to Bozeman seeking work but were unable to stay because of the lack of somewhere to dwell. These potential employees eventually end up in Butte or Helena shelters.
Paul Babb, the Chief Executive of Butte, says Bozeman’s lack of resources to deal with homelessness only puts a larger strain on services in Butte.
“To me it seems unfortunate that one community would ship their problems off to another,” Babb says. “To me it shows a lack of compassion… We are trying to deal with the folks in our community already. When we start trying to solve other people’s problems it stresses what we’re trying to do already.”
Mark Tymrak, Bozeman Director of Public Safety-Police, is in his 32nd year with the Bozeman Police Department. Concerning law enforcement protocol for dealing with transients and the homeless in Bozeman, Tymrak says the city has explored several options, but he emphasized police deal with situations as they arise and absolutely do not “float” anymore.
Tymrak says officers always let the homeless know of the limited resources available to them in Bozeman, and they are also informed of resources in other cities like Butte. “That’s all we can do is try to steer them in the right direction,” Tymrak adds.
Local efforts included working with local churches to address the problem and providing meal tickets and motel rooms for families in difficult circumstances.
“Most all of our contacts are very civil in nature,” Tymrak explains. “We don’t seek these things out. We respond to complaints. There’s been a multitude of things we’ve tried over the years.”
Tymrak says the homelessness issue is on the rise in Bozeman. The winter months used to clear out most transients, but Tymrak says, “It’s a 12-month-a-year deal now. The numbers are increasing.”
When asked about concerns that a homeless shelter would bring more panhandlers downtown, Tymrak says he is skeptical.
“I don’t know that that would be true,” Tymrak responds. “In Helena, for example, folks have a place to go instead of trespassing. It will give folks options…Some of these folks are just unemployable, but if they have a place to go where they can get employment and have options hopefully there will be some success stories there.”
Bozeman City Manager Chris Kukulski says, though the issue is not entirely at the door of the city, he believes the community has ignored the issue for too long and shares a responsibility regardless of the scope of the problem.
“If just a few people are homeless, it’s an important issue,” Kukulski explains. “We can’t stick our heads in the sand and pretend it doesn’t exist.”
Kukulski added, though the city commission has not yet had a formal discussion about the shelter, the most important thing for him is simply to see that the shelter comes to fruition. He says it is part of the transition of “a small town growing into a small city.”
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Comments
This seems to be at least partially confirmed by the police chief:
"Tymrak says officers always let the homeless know of the limited resources available to them in Bozeman, and they are also informed of resources in other cities like Butte. “That’s all we can do is try to steer them in the right direction,” Tymrak adds."
Ah, rhetoric. Heaven knows the vacationing yuppies and second-home-owners don't want to be reminded that the less fortunate exist-- that's why they left New York! God forbid they should see one of these poor people and perhaps be too offended to spend money.
The City has been a partner in almost all of the local efforts to meet housing needs, through its Affordable Housing Fund, grant sponsorship, etc. Several hundred affordable dwelling units have been created through these programs. The current City focus on affordable workforce homeownership is the latest in a series of private-public partnerships, and its primary target group is not very low-income people, but most of its housing efforts have been focused at least in part on those at the low end of income spectrum.
Past efforts to establish a homeless shelter in Bozeman have failed. It's up to all of us to ensure the current effort is a success.