NEWS BRIEFS

COVID-19 overflow shelter at The Fairgrounds Nashville to close July 1

The COVID-19 overflow shelter located at The Fairgrounds Nashville is set to close for good by July 1.

The shelter opened on March 26, 2020, to serve as an overflow for the Nashville Rescue Mission, to provide space for social distancing and offered separate facilities for those awaiting test results, those who were symptomatic and those who were healthy.

The end of overflow shetlers started with the women’s overflow arm located at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium on April 1. Reduced capacity at the main shelter will happen in two phases before closing completely.

In the last year, the shelter, which was run by the Nashville Office of Emergency Management, provided 135,526 meals and sheltered 1,313 unique individuals. Metro Social Services staff provided assistance with job searches, obtained necessary documents for housing and found housing itself. They were able to secure housing for 76 individuals through housing vouchers, subsidized housing and reunions with family. Other partners came in to provide services including laundry, mental and physical health care and mail services.

When the shelter was originally announced, there was pushback from the Continuum of Care Homeless Planning Council, a 25-member council that serves as the governance board for a collective of organizations in Nashville that serve people experiencing homelessness. In a letter to the mayor’s office, the council criticized a congregate shelter instead of individual housing, and lack of consultation with area service providers and people with lived experience.

On May 7, 2020, a man staying at the Fairgrounds Nashville emergency shelter was arrested after fleeing quarantine. He remains the only person arrested on such a charge in Nashville. There was also at least one recorded COVID-19 outbreak at the shelter.

Those running the shelter cited a climbing rate of vaccinations as reason for phasing out the shelter. Local low-income clinic chain Neighborhood Health has been attempting to offer access to the vaccine for 100 percent of people experiencing homelessness in Nashville.

“There continues to be a higher number of those at the temporary shelter that have been vaccinated thanks to the hard work of the Health Department and other community organizations,” said Dr. Gill Wright, Interim Chief Medical Officer for the Metro Public Health Department. “With vaccinations continuing to increase it is safe to begin shifting services found at the temporary shelter back to the community organizations that serve the homeless, while also monitoring the process over the next three months.”

People awaiting COVID-19 test results and people who are COVID-19 positive will be able to remain at the shelter until it completely closes.

Once the shelter closes, the Fairgrounds will take six to eight weeks to prepare the facilities for use again.

“The Fairgrounds Nashville has been happy to assist in the care and temporary housing of Nashville’s vulnerable homeless community during the pandemic,” Nashville Fairgrounds Executive Director Laura Womack said. “It’s a good indication that Nashville is on the mend as we begin this transition to decommission the shelter. We look forward to safely resuming events in the near future.”

Bill that would have made solicitation, camping a misdemeanor defeated

A bill sponsored by State Rep. Ryan Williams (R-Cookeville) and Sen. Paul Bailey (R-Sparta), would have made solicitation or camping “on the shoulder, berm, or right-of-way of a state or interstate highway or under a bridge or overpass” a class C misdemeanor offense punishable by a $50 fine and community service work.

It was defeated in a Senate committee on April 13 after Open Table Nashville co-founders Lindsey Krinks and Ingrid McIntyre spoke in a hearing against the bill.

“OTN will remain vigilant to ensure this bill doesn’t resurface, and will continue to advocate against all legislation that further criminalizes people experiencing homelessness,” Open Table Nashville wrote in a social media post.

The bill would have also broadened the language within the Equal Access to Public Property Act of 2012 so that people could be prosecuted not only on state property, but also on all public property across Tennessee.

Cooper names new economic and community development director

Mayor John Cooper recently announced what the city called a “jobs creation veteran” as the city’s new Economic and Community Development Director.

In a release, Cooper said Courtney Pogue, “brings decades of experience, a track record for 18,000-plus job creation commitments and a specialty in housing development to the role.”

“This is a big moment for Nashville, as we embark on a major rebound in our city – including with the largest economic development deal in Nashville and state history,” Mayor Cooper said. “Now, we move forward in creating a Nashville that works for everyone — and Courtney will be central to that work.”

Pogue is tasked with developing a master economic and community development plan for the city to help boost “small, micro-and minority-owned businesses; attract and retain quality jobs and leverage economic opportunities to support equitable, sustainable development in all Nashville’s neighborhoods.”