Dozens of speakers described homelessness and shelter-related needs during the city’s budget hearing, urging continued general-fund support for shelters, heat-relief centers and services to help residents obtain identification documents.

Several attendees said they had lost important documents and personal belongings during city-police or shelter interactions and asked the council to change enforcement practices that they said lead to property being confiscated or discarded. “They give everyone 10 to 15 minutes to do this and if it's not done, they call in a city truck and put all of your belongings in the truck and take it to a landfill,” said Frank Urban of Fund for Empowerment, describing his experience and observations about enforcement practices affecting people experiencing homelessness.

Speakers also urged funding to keep shelter facilities open and to make those facilities accessible to people with physical or other barriers. Elizabeth Venable noted that the preliminary budget includes substantial general-fund support for shelter facilities and urged attention to accessibility and service quality so residents can actually use those resources.

Why this matters: testimony emphasized the human and public-health impacts of displacement. Faith Kearns and others described having personal property destroyed, having to replace identification documents and the ongoing hardship that follow such losses. Evelyn Castillo, Phoenix field organizer for Take Back Our Homes, said many councilmembers support a right-to-counsel measure but that funding and promotion of existing eviction legal services is inadequate.

What the city said: Councilwoman Keisha Hodge Washington acknowledged the public comments, noted staff from the Office of Homeless Solutions and Human Services were present in the chamber, and encouraged attendees to speak with staff after the hearing to provide details for follow-up.

Ending: Advocates asked council offices to guarantee continued shelter funding and to examine enforcement and property-handling policies for people experiencing homelessness; no formal council action on these issues was taken at the hearing.