Austin OK's purchase of building for homeless navigation center

In a tight 4-3 vote after about two hours of public comment Thursday, the Austin City Council agreed to spend $4.38 million to buy a building near East Oltorf Street to serve as the site of a new city-run homeless navigation center.

The site, at 2401 S. Interstate 35, raised safety concerns for many of the residents in the neighborhood who say the area already struggles with crime and slow response times. Proponents argued that the new center would offer necessary services in an area with a high need.

The homeless navigation center would serve as a place for people to receive access to day-to-day survival needs, services to help prevent homelessness and support to locate, apply for and move into housing.

"Not one place should have all the services for everyone who needs it, and that is what (the city's Homeless Strategy Office) has identified, and this is the first step in that process," said Ryan Alter, who voted in favor of the acquisition. "But we are going to take the lessons we have learned the past many years and get this right and uncommitted, to work my colleagues so that that happens."

Council Member Marc Duchen messaged his colleagues Wednesday morning saying he planned to make a motion to postpone the vote for 30 days. In response, Mayor Kirk Watson wrote, "Kicking the can down the road doesn’t really make a hard decision any easier. No location will ever be perfect."

Duchen motioned for a postponement in Thursday’s meeting, but failed to get a second.

"I feel like my office, at least, needs about two weeks to try and make sense of a lot of details for what's ultimately going to be probably a very critical piece of our homeless solution, but also a critical impact on a neighborhood," Duchen said at the council meeting Thursday.

He was still confused, he added, on details about the plan, including the nature of the navigation center, whether it’s a housing navigation center, whether there will be ancillary support services and transit options.

Council members Jose Velasquez and Zohaib Qadri joined Duchen in voting against the new acquisition.

Velasquez, who represents District 3 where the center would be, told the council he was voting against it because of the rushed process and pace of selecting an appropriate location.

"With that said, should this item pass today, I'll be the first one to roll up my sleeves. I'll be the first one to work alongside HSO, alongside my colleagues, alongside District 3, to ensure that the entire community, both house and unhoused, are at the table shaping this process," Velasquez said before the vote.