Thread by @UR_Ninja

NEW: Some of Mpls' unhoused formed a union, arguing their legal right to shelter during the worsening pandemic. Meanwhile, constituents have been persistent in pushing Commissioner @MarionGreene to consider short-term solutions other than group shelters.

unicornriot.ninja/2020/unhoused-…

Announced on Sunday, Nov 8, the homeless tenants union is arguing with @legal_aid_MN that Minnesota @GovTimWalz' suspension of evictions during the #COVID19 pandemic protects people experiencing homelessness who had been housed in hotels as an emergency temporary measure.

At the Nov 3 Hennepin County Board meeting, instead of putting funds toward the shelter opportunity at the Bloomington hotel, 4 of 7 commissioners formally voted to approve Dominium's $171.9M plan to renovate crumbling buildings at Fort Snelling into 191 multi-room apartments.

Dissenting votes against the proposal:
🚫 @michael_opat D1
🚫 @irenekfernando D2
🚫 @D4Commish D4 (includes Fort Snelling Unorganized Territory)

Commissioners who voted for the proposal:
✅ @MarionGreene D3
✅ @HennepinDebbie D5
✅ Jan Callison District 6
✅ @MNJeffJohnson D7

Since Nov 3 constituents of Marion Greene have been asking to meet with her. Greene is the current chair of the county board; some say for weeks they’ve been sending Greene concerns & specific recommendations on addressing #homelessness in Hennepin County.

https://twitter.com/UR_Ninja/status/1323715877087432704

It is widely acknowledged the park encampments are not an ideal short-term solution. For many, they were the safest option.

Dehumanization from county shelter staff, assaults, and rape have been reported from unhoused residents who have spent the night in county group shelters.

Community members such as Sam Pree-Stinson, former policy aide to the city of Minneapolis, are asking elected officials: “Where do you want the unhoused to go? If they can’t be under bridges, in parks, then where?”

Full article on unicornriot.ninja—unicornriot.ninja/2020/unhoused-…