On December 12, 2009, a group of community activists and Green Party members including John Reeder presented the following petition to the Arlington County Board:

Petition to the Arlington County Board—A Plan to Improve the Well-Being of the Homeless and Near Homeless in Arlington County Virginia

            December 12, 2009

Whereas:

      All people have an inalienable right to basic shelter, and to be treated with dignity.

      Over 500 people were counted as homeless in Arlington in January 2009 (a 25-percent rise from January 2008).

      In September 2009 over 5,500 Arlington residents were officially unemployed and many more thousands unable to find full-time work.

      Average rents in Arlington in 2009 exceed $1,700 a month, and require an income  in excess of $65,000 a year to be affordable.

      The county’s one current winter shelter can only accommodate 73 people in a dilapidated building, and is open only from November through March; and

      Many unsheltered people must live outdoors in Arlington parks and open space.

 

Therefore:

1. The County Government should open and operate a year round shelter to accommodate all unsheltered homeless people. This year-round shelter should be a “low barrier” shelter (similar to the current winter shelter) that takes care of any unsheltered individual.

 

2. The County Government will finance the establishment of single room occupancy (SRO) dormitory style housing, so that single adults can be quickly transferred from the shelter to the SRO or to any other vacant affordable apartment in the county.

 

1. The County Board shall direct the Arlington County police who encounter homeless individuals living and sleeping in open space in the county to call county (DHS) social workers so that such homeless individuals may be directed to this safe shelter instead of being arrested for living in the open.

 

1. The County Government should seek Obama stimulus funds to begin a public job program for homeless people and unemployed residents to perform needed community work in county parks, school buildings, community clean up efforts such as along Four-Mile Run, the Potomac River, and major roads and streets, and undertake green energy savings efforts such as weatherization and free energy audits for county residents.

 

1. That the causes of chronic homelessness be addressed.  There needs to be increased funding for the treatment of mental illness and substance abuse. County officials, such as police officers, fire personnel, should be more rigorously trained to diagnosis, handle and treatment for such individuals. 

 

1. That more stringent guideline should be put in place to deal with such individuals in order that they may be given treatment earlier in the progress of their disease. This will prevent treatment only when their problems have become so chronic that they pose a threat to themselves and others of our community.

 

1. That services to combat homelessness need to be extended to all individuals regardless of their residency status (including undocumented workers).  That extra effort is exerted to contact and treat the Day Laborers of our county.