By Sam Kmack | Arizona Republic
An effort in Scottsdale to house the homeless has faced backlash from both residents and officials since city councilmembers approved it last month, but the pushback is largely based on a misunderstanding of how the program actually works, according to a review by The Arizona Republic.
The current “bridge housing” initiative began last fall when Scottsdale used COVID-19 relief cash to rent out 10 rooms at a hotel in McCormick Ranch. Single-parent families and seniors who were either homeless or would have become homeless without help could stay there for up to four months, giving them time to find housing elsewhere.
The program can serve as many as 120 people each year and staffers said that more than 80% of the participants transition to a more permanent housing situation by the time they leave the hotel, which is why the initiative has been widely considered a success for those who are familiar with it.
But widespread support ceased on June 27 when Scottsdale accepted a $940,000 state grant to keep the program running for another year. It caused some residents to fear for the area’s safety because of two terms within the grant contract: that migrant asylum-seekers and those ousted from “The Zone” in Phoenix also be offered rooms.
