Agenda Item Title:
Authorize Mayor and Finance Director to Enter into CoResponder Agreement with Journey On!, Inc. to Provide Collaborative Street Level Responses to Those in Crisis and in Need of Services in Rapid City
Origination Group:
Legal & Finance Committee
Origination Meeting Date:
10/27/2021
City Council Hearing Date:
11/01/2021
Staff Contact:
Jennifer Utter, Assistant City Attorney; Don Hedrick, Police Chief; Dave Kinser, Research and Development Specialist from RCPD
Agenda Item Summary:
The Rapid City Police Department receives a significant amount of daily calls for service that do not involve criminal activity, but rather requesting assistance to enable members of the houseless community in crisis to receive transportation and referrals to local service providers.
The Rapid City Police Department and other stakeholders have been meeting for months to explore other options for meeting these needs, and working through the details of how contracting for these social-work type serves could be effective in our community. Journey On!, Inc. currently provides the services contemplated and is willing to enter into agreement with the City to provide a minimum of 120 hours per week of response coverage during the course of this one year agreement. This Agreement also contemplates a 2 month pilot period, funded separately through currently approved Rapid City Police Department budget funds.
The City of Rapid City, Rapid City Police Department, and the Rapid City Fire Department request to partner and contract with Journey On!, Inc., to provide outreach services, resources, and case management to community members suffering from poverty, addiction, mental illness, and homelessness.
For decades, the City of Rapid City, RCPD, and RCFD have responded to the above social issues using traditional law enforcement and fire/medical resources. Law enforcement and fire personnel do an exceptional job triaging social issues in emergencies; however, they cannot provide case management and lasting resources to those in need. This traditional approach has not yielded sustainable results and needs a community approach where resources are shared, and partnerships are formed.
Journey On!, Inc. has been identified as a community organization willing to partner with the City of Rapid City, RCPD, and RCFD to provide proactive community outreach to our citizens in need. Through their proactive effort, expertise, perspective, and combining resources, we believe an opportunity exists to discover innovative solutions to improve the quality of life for our unhoused citizens and those suffering from mental health and addiction.
The attached contract and proposal outline the responsibilities of the City of Rapid City and Journey On!, Inc.. The goals of this contract are to reduce law enforcement and fire/medical response to low-level calls for service not involving criminal issues, facilitate service readiness, service navigation, and case management for our unhoused population and those suffering from mental health and addiction, and combine resources with community partners to provide lasting and sustainable solutions. Progress toward these goals will be seen through a reduction in calls for service relating to those in poverty and who are unhoused, data tracking of contacts and referrals, and a reduction in the number of those who are unhoused in our community through increased delivery of substance abuse, housing, and violence mitigation resources.
Funding Source & Fiscal Impact (if applicable):
| Funding | Cost Center |
|---|---|
| Mayor's Budget | |
Is Funding Budgeted?:
Budgeted
Recommendations:
Origination Recommendation Action:
Approve