Minnetonka latest suburb looking at ways to deter homeless encampments

Another Twin Cities suburb is looking to expressly ban camping on city property amid concerns about homelessness.

Minnetonka began discussing an encampment ordinance shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that cities can enforce bans on sleeping outside on public property. Following that decision, Minnesota cities including Duluth, Brainerd and Shakopee banned camping on city property, citing public health and safety concerns. Recently, Robbinsdale narrowly voted down a similar effort.

The Minnetonka ordinance would apply when there is more than one tent and requires city staff to try to connect homeless people to social services before citing them. It would then require campers to leave within 72 hours or face a misdemeanor citation.

Minnetonka Community Development Director Julie Wischnack said the policy would clarify the city’s approach to camping on city property.

The city would not penalize people in cases where shelter and services were unavailable, and Wischnack said no one would be arrested for camping unless they also committed a crime, like assaulting a police officer. The ordinance would further require staff to take “reasonable steps” to preserve personal items.

“Minnetonka hasn’t experienced encampments, like large encampments that we hear about,” Kendyl Larson, housing coordinator for Minnetonka, told the city council at a recent study session. “But we want to be proactive, we don’t want to be reactive.”

Some City Council members raised concerns about how the ordinance could affect people who are vulnerable. Council Member Kissy Coakley said she wanted to make sure the policy doesn’t penalize people for mental health conditions.

Homelessness isn’t always as visible in the Twin Cities suburbs as in the core cities, said Rebecca Sales, co-director of the Minnesota Homeless Study conducted by Wilder Research every three years.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not there. About 700 homeless people were living in the suburbs in the most recent count, about 11% of the overall number across the metro.

Regardless of where they live, most people experiencing homelessness cite the lack of affordable housing as the reason they became or remain homeless, Sales said.

The number of homeless people in a city can fluctuate widely, said Michael Mondor, the fire chief in Maplewood. Staff there recently held a meeting outlining the city’s approach to homelessness as the city noticed an uptick in people without shelter.

Mondor said it matters what neighboring cities are doing, such as clearing an encampment.

Kyle Hanson, executive director of Agate Housing and Services, a Minneapolis organization that provides services to the homeless, said in an email that he’s glad cities like Minnetonka plan to collaborate with service providers before clearing encampments.

But he also said if cities are going to propose ordinances to remove encampments, they should also work help fund organizations that house people.

“Encampment clearings done without partnership simply makes our work harder,” he said.

Minnetonka’s move came after several other suburbs have taken steps to deter encampments. Shakopee passed its anti-camping ordinance in February, citing encampments along the Minnesota River.

A Shakopee spokesperson declined to comment on its policy or whether it has been used since its passage, though city officials also said the rule was aimed at bringing the city in line with state policies on riverside camping.

Residents also worried the ban could push people from one place to another due to a lack of shelter beds, putting them at greater risk and making it harder for social workers to find their clients.

In a letter to the council, members of the city’s Human Rights Commission said the current policy of connecting unhoused people with services has been effective — including recently when two people were reported camping by the city water tower.