To the editor,

I appreciate Reece Bartels suggesting an easy and quick solution to River Falls’ homeless problem. Unfortunately like many simplistic solutions, it only works to a point and that point was reached long ago. Most of the unhoused in River Falls are disabled. And even those who are not need more help than an individual can provide to escape the hellish life they've become stuck in. Those that CAN be welcomed into homes have been. How do we help those that cannot is the problem we now face.
Luckily, we are not the first small community to face the dilemma of how to best help our homeless residents. Simply throwing money at this problem has been proven to not work. It's what big cities did. Small rural communities like ours, however, did not have this option and developed emergency shelter programs that actually work. These emergency shelter programs do more than simply provide a safe place to sleep. They help the homeless escape abject poverty by connecting these individuals, most of whom are disabled, with available resources. They coordinate the positive efforts of caring individuals, churches, and municipalities. 
The Coalition and local churches are ready to help. Unfortunately, the recent passing of a city ordinance criminalizing homelessness set our efforts back at least six months and is a clear indication that River Falls city leaders are not yet ready to join this 2-year old effort. Hopefully that will change as we move forward with providing emergency shelter based on what has worked elsewhere.
If anyone is interested in helping with this project or even just curious about what has worked elsewhere, I encourage you to join the River Falls Alliance for the Homeless via our Facebook page. If your church is not yet part of this effort, I encourage you to contact me directly about how they fit into the plan. Similarly, I encourage any city leader to contact me if they are interested in becoming part of this solution. While emergency housing can be provided to those in need without the assistance of city leaders, the solution to the bigger problem of a severe shortage of transitional and low-income housing cannot happen without that.

Dana Linscott

Town of Clifton