OKC to offer beautification jobs to panhandlers

[Pete]

Press release:

*************

A Better Way program launches in Oklahoma City, offering beautification work to people who panhandle
09/09/2021

A Better Way is launching in Oklahoma City on Sept. 13 – a local version of a groundbreaking employment program in Tulsa and other communities offering beautification work to people who panhandle.

A Better Way OKC uses mobile outreach with a van that visits people at panhandling hotspots, offering jobs beautifying public spaces instead of asking drivers and pedestrians for money.

“There are many ways that people enter homelessness and so there must be many ways out as well,” said Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt. “The answers aren’t simple. We have to offer a lot of different options to meet people where they are. We already have a national model with entities like Curbside, but a lot of people in our city were also intrigued and inspired by this program, and its success in Tulsa and other places. The best programs provide benefits to the community on many levels, and ‘A Better Way’ certainly does that. It provides a path for some of our residents who need it the most, while also beautifying our public spaces. My gratitude to everyone who made this program launch possible.”

“Our program in Tulsa has been a great success helping people gain competitive employment and access to services,” said Terri White, CEO of Mental Health Association Oklahoma. It is exciting to see it now in our city thanks to Mayor Holt, the Oklahoma City Council, the United Way of Central Oklahoma, Inasmuch Foundation and the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma.

The van will visit panhandling hotspots from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday and offer people lunch and a $65 daily wage for work like litter removal and beautification in parks and other public areas.

The program also assigns participants to a case manager who will connect them with services they need like mental health services, substance use treatment, healthcare, housing, transportation and most importantly workforce training. The major goal of the program is to help people gain competitive employment and move to self-sufficiency. An employment specialist will network with local employers to find long-term work for successful participants.

Mental Health Association Oklahoma is providing day-to-day program management for A Better Way OKC. United Way of Central Oklahoma provided $120,000 in seed money, and Inasmuch Foundation contributed $10,000. Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma is donating boxed lunches for participants. The City of Oklahoma City is contributing $150,000 in start-up costs plus the van and program oversight.

Mental Health Association Oklahoma launched Tulsa’s program in 2018, modeling it on similar programs elsewhere. In 2020 A Better Way Tulsa served 265 people. Of those,130 were enrolled in mental health and other services; 73 found competitive employment and 4 people experiencing homelessness were permanently housed.

Ongoing community support will be key to the program’s success. Potential employers, service providers or donors can visit abetterwayokc.org for more information and contacts.

Homelessness in OKC

A Better Way is specifically tied to panhandling, but many people who panhandle also experience homelessness. A Better Way is only one of the City of Oklahoma City’s efforts to end homelessness.

Home OKC in the Planning Department manages City programs for people experiencing homelessness, including those tied to federal grants. Visit okc.gov/homeokc for more.

The Mayor’s Task Force on Homelessness recently developed its 2021 Strategies to Address Homelessness, a 24-strategy plan to work on problems locally. Read it here at okc.gov/homeokc.

MAPS 4 also includes $50 million specifically for homelessness, plus $40 million for mental health and addiction, $38 million for a Family Justice Center operated by Palomar, $17 million for a criminal justice Diversion Hub and more. Visit okc.gov/maps4 for details.

[HangryHippo]

I love this. Sounds very similar to what ABQ does.

[OKCbyTRANSFER]

^^ +1. I sincerely hope both those that need take advantage and our city sees some improvement, a win win. Great idea.

[TheTravellers]

Great idea! They can work and OKC can get things cleaned up since they've been lacking in that area for a while...

[OKCbyTRANSFER]

I'll add, SIGN REMOVAL!!
Let's get all those dang "I buy houses" signs off every corner in the city. Talk about beautification effort, gets my vote

[Thomas Vu]

I like the idea. From a housing perspective, would they have to be roommates to get it to work logistically?

[Midtowner]

This would have been a better use than the $2MM+ defending a blatantly unconstitutional ordinance.

[LocoAko]

This would have been a better use than the $2MM+ defending a blatantly unconstitutional ordinance.

Yeah, no kidding....

[billokc]

This sounds good, and I'm sure it looks good on paper, but given the fact so many of the panhandlers look just for a tax free handout, I want to see the results of the program. If it works okay, then great!

[Plutonic Panda]

This seems really cool:

https://www.velocityokc.com/blog/ins...terWay10_20_21

I highly doubt they are going to pay taxes on this. This seems more to be about helping people survive and/or get on their feet.

[ChrisHayes]

In and ideal world this would help them earn money to where they can find an apartment to live in and get a used car, then move on to another job or get an education. But like a previous poster stated, I worry that many or at least some of them, for whatever reason, won't take the city up on the offer. I do like the idea though.

[oklip955]

Many have drug and/or mental health issues, I am not sure that many could or would really do the work.

[Plutonic Panda]

Meh, a little meth gets people over enthusiastically motivated to do things lol. It just depends on whatever floats their boat. Tulsa and other cities have reported success with this program, no?

[MagzOK]

Many have drug and/or mental health issues, I am not sure that many could or would really do the work.

You are absolutely right. I've done work at one of the local shelters for a long time and this is absolutely true. That being said, not all of them are, but the vast majority.

[Rover]

In and ideal world this would help them earn money to where they can find an apartment to live in and get a used car, then move on to another job or get an education. But like a previous poster stated, I worry that many or at least some of them, for whatever reason, won't take the city up on the offer. I do like the idea though.

I worked with a company that had a plant in Colton, California that used a program like this for labor in the factory. The city of Riverside vetted the homeless persons who needed a hand to get back on their feet and be productive citizens and did training, drug testing, etc., and gave them temporary shelter while they got enough cash to be independent. They even bussed the workers to our plant and picked them up at the end of the day. It was HIGHLY successful in getting people where they wanted to be and off the long term assistance programs they were reliant on. All in all, these workers tended to be more productive workers than the general population we hired from. Most landed on their feet and are still there. They just needed some understanding, support, and help.

A hand up vs a hand out is welcomed by most of the unemployed homeless. As mentioned, those who were untrainable or hopelessly addicted to alcohol or drugs are another story and need a whole other kind of help.

[Rover]

This sounds good, and I'm sure it looks good on paper, but given the fact so many of the panhandlers look just for a tax free handout, I want to see the results of the program. If it works okay, then great!

Such a cold and uninformed remark. I hope you never find yourself in dire straits and need a hand. You tend reap what you sow.... bad and good. Fortunately, a good portion of our society, particularly in OKC, are caring, loving people with a heart and willing to help others.

[Rover]

You are absolutely right. I've done work at one of the local shelters for a long time and this is absolutely true. That being said, not all of them are, but the vast majority.

The issue often is whether those with these problems can be helped to rehab or whether we just toss them on the pile to be burned. I've had interaction and believe most people would be shocked at the back stories on so many. It is easy to be judgmental without knowing anything about the persons. Putting people into nameless, faceless, groups for definition tends to reduce them to numbers, anecdotes, and caricatures. As Ted Lasso quoted, "Be curious, not judgmental". Just remember, there, but for the grace of God go I"

[oklip955]

My point being that many have problems, they do need help to solve them, be it problems from mental health issue, substance abuse or others. What i am saying is these folks need programs to help them. I know there are many good programs out there but lots of people who need help. I donate to those groups providing help. Sometimes it means they need a warm meal, a safe place to sleep or longer term programs to address the problems which put them on the street. Some dont want long term help. Many do. I think to solve the homeless issues it has to be a program that addresses lots of needs.

[PhiAlpha]

Such a cold and uninformed remark. I hope you never find yourself in dire straits and need a hand. You tend reap what you sow.... bad and good. Fortunately, a good portion of our society, particularly in OKC, are caring, loving people with a heart and willing to help others.

I'll agree with you for sure on some of them but on the flip side, the homeless population has grown exponentially in downtown Tulsa and I've personally witnessed several concerning situations unfold involving aggressive homeless people in my 10 months living down here. Particularly concerning with regard to the safety of women down here, especially when walking alone at night. Among them, on the day a female friend of mine moved here from Detroit, a homeless man asked she and her dad for money then when they said no, he pulled down his pants and started touching himself in front of her...with kids present on the street. In another situation, I was walking with a friend who firmly told a homeless man that he didn't have any money...the guy walked away then ran back up behind us and punched him in the head. Last week, a homeless man was asked to move away from the building entrance next door so that a delivery could be made at 5:00 in the morning but became so aggravated that the police had to be called. Just yesterday, two of the women that work at the Jimmy Johns near my building had to call the police because a homeless man who had harassed them on multiple occasions (threatening to rape, kidnap, kill, etc them) actually lunched at them while they were closing the shop and trying to leave. Fortunately they were able to run back inside, lock the door, and call the police. It's become concerning enough that I've started carrying when walking my dog late at between dusk and dawn.

Most of those situations were likely perpetrated by the addicted or mentally ill part of the homeless populations here, so this probably doesn't really apply to the comment you were responding to but while it's easy to dismiss "cold and uninformed" remarks about the homeless population, when you're dealing with an increasing number of them everyday and they seem that they are becoming more violent/aggressive...it's easy to become overly cynical and frustrated about the situation (especially when it seems as though little to nothing is being done about it). Of course then I talk to friends in Denver, where the homeless population is growing out of control and feel a lot better about where we are.

This program is a great idea for those that are interested, able, and willing to work but my not be doing so for various reasons (similar to the curbside chronical). My friends and I up here were actually discussing how something like this could be implemented here before it was announced in OKC. Of course, our concern with it is that when walking around downtown, we just aren't sure what percentage actually fit into the "interested, able, and willing." Obviously it's worth it if you can help even a handful of people who are really trying but I'm not sure how much it will actually help the problem as a whole.

[PhiAlpha]

The issue often is whether those with these problems can be helped to rehab or whether we just toss them on the pile to be burned. I've had interaction and believe most people would be shocked at the back stories on so many. It is easy to be judgmental without knowing anything about the persons. Putting people into nameless, faceless, groups for definition tends to reduce them to numbers, anecdotes, and caricatures. As Ted Lasso quoted, "Be curious, not judgmental". Just remember, there, but for the grace of God go I"

This was a really good quote among many in that show that I try to keep in mind.

[Rover]

Obviously it's worth it if you can help even a handful of people who are really trying but I'm not sure how much it will actually help the problem as a whole.

People are blind or ignorant of the facts if they think it is just a handful that can be helped. And these same people are eager to amplify small anecdotal stories and extrapolate these into blanket statements. Less than a handful are dangerous or perverse. But those are who some people choose to try to make the poster children so as to scare everyone else and to salve their own consciences and justify their lack of empathy or sympathy.

[PhiAlpha]

People are blind or ignorant of the facts if they think it is just a handful that can be helped. And these same people are eager to amplify small anecdotal stories and extrapolate these into blanket statements. Less than a handful are dangerous or perverse. But those are who some people choose to try to make the poster children so as to scare everyone else and to salve their own consciences and justify their lack of empathy or sympathy.

I think it’s obviously a small percentage that are aggressive and dangerous (though to deny that subset exist is also ignorant…I’ve literally witnessed it with my own eyes on multiple occasions) but I also think there’s only a small percentage that would be willing to accept jobs like this. The Jimmy Johns tried to hire several and really made an effort to help them along but they quit. So like I said, I think a handful would be helped by a program like that but you’ll need mental health and drug rehabilitation for a large portion and some frankly don’t want help. That said I think the effort is 100% worth it for those that it would benefit.