ST. LOUIS 鈥 The day after the city cleared a tent camp outside City Hall, the Rev. Larry Rice and others with his New Life Evangelistic Center organization gathered nearby to chide Mayor Tishaura O. Jones for not doing enough to help homeless people.
During the clearing on Tuesday, a majority of 37 campers accepted the city鈥檚 offer of shelter or transitional housing, said mayoral spokesman Nick Dunne. People had been living near City Hall for weeks, and city officials said police and EMS had been called to the camp dozens of times.
Rice contended that while some homeless people were placed in shelters, most stayed on the streets by going to other locations. The city should set aside acreage outside for homeless people who don鈥檛 want to stay at shelters, he said.
鈥淭hose that prefer that lifestyle, they can do that, we can take them step by step to break the cycle of homelessness,鈥 Rice said.
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In response, Dunne said the mayor鈥檚 administration has invested nearly $20 million in federal pandemic aid money to support the unhoused.
鈥淭hat covers a broad spectrum鈥 of services, Dunne said, from emergency shelters to transitional housing to a new 鈥渟afe haven鈥 for people with substance abuse and mental health issues.
Moreover, Dunne said, there are nearly 900 units of affordable housing currently under construction.
The mayor also has tried unsuccessfully to get the Board of Aldermen to agree to set up so-called 鈥渋ntentional encampments鈥 for homeless people who won鈥檛 go to traditional shelters.
Rice, who decades ago organized a similar tent city outside City Hall called 鈥淪choemehlville鈥 to attack then-Mayor Vincent Schoemehl, said 鈥渨e didn鈥檛 go out and plan鈥 the recent camp.
He said after people started gathering on their own, New Life offered tents, food and water and other assistance. 鈥淩ay referred just one family here,鈥 Rice said, referring to the Rev. Ray Redlich.
鈥淲e need a variety of shelters鈥 of different types, Redlich said. 鈥淭he city needs to do more. It needs to provide more funding, more staff.鈥
Rice alleged Wednesday that Jones鈥 administration decision to clear the homeless camp outside City Hall was because of the scheduled Friday visit of Vice President Kamala Harris to the Democratic National Committee meeting at a downtown hotel.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no connection between this and the DNC,鈥 Dunne said.
Editor's note: This article has been updated to correct the amount of federal pandemic aid allocated to support the unhoused.