A woman writes a postcard to the Tucson Mayor and Council asking them to reconsider a city ordinance that requires a permit to distribute food to 10 or more people in city parks on Friday, March 15, 2024.
The Tucson City Council will re-examine a policy that requires volunteer organizations to obtain permits to distribute food to people in public parks.
“I think we need to review our policies to match with the realities,” Mayor Regina Romero said at the Nov. 7 study session.
The city’s Housing First Program currently uses homeless encampment reporting from the community to map “hotspots,” which they say goes into determining permit eligibility.
Ordinance 21-4b says permits will not be issued for any park within 1.5 miles of another location that serves food, like a soup kitchen or shelter.
Mutual aid groups have brought up multiple arguments against the policy, like inconsistent meals and hours, inaccessibility to travel, and the risks unhoused individuals take in leaving behind their belongings.
City council members they’d examine the 1.5 mile rule specifically.
“Maybe that's the exact sweet spot right distance. Maybe it's not,” councilmember Karin Uhlich said.
Mutual aid groups and city officials also acknowledge the permit policy is inconsistently enforced. A city staffer said at the meeting that they have not denied any permits in recent memory, while Vice Mayor Kevin Dahl said he’s aware that many assistance groups now disregard the permit process altogether.
“We haven't gone into any enforcement action, which probably is not appropriate this time,” Dahl said.
Casa Maria Soup Kitchen, located within 1.5 miles of Santa Rita Park, only serves lunch. Dahl said he agreed that inconsistent shelter hours are a reason that the city should make it easier for volunteers to provide food at other times of the day.
“They're going to do it anyway, and we're not using it to really enforce what they're doing. We're doing it to help direct groups where their help is most needed. We're doing it to collect the data. We're doing it to make sure they're doing it safely,” he said.
Earlier this year, aid group members said they felt hostility towards their efforts had increased, after several groups were asked to leave city parks.
“At best, it’s apathetic and kind of dismissive; at worst, it’s very hostile,” mutual aid member Laura Ruiz told AZPM this spring.
At Thursday's meeting, several city council members expressed their appreciation to volunteer groups for filling in the gaps in services.
Dahl said he had started holding meetings with members of mutual aid groups, and said they needed to be included in the policy revisions.
“We recognize they are developing relationships with people who need help, and they may be a conduit for our navigators and our social workers to reach those people and get them into a better situation, whether that's dealing with their mental illness, their fentanyl addiction, or just finding four walls,” he said.
Councilmember Lane Santa Cruz said the needs also extend beyond food.
“I've been out there at Armory [Park], Santa Rita park on a Saturday while mutual aid groups, are giving out things, it's toiletries, it's a shirt, you know, pair of shoes, whatever it is, you know, that somebody might have in their time of need,” Santa Cruz said.
The council unanimously moved to hold city-wide conversations and report their new recommendations for Ordinance 21-4b in two months.
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