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HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — On Thursday, volunteers joined Houston agencies to clean out an abandoned property that city leaders claim is a hotbed for crime.
According to District J City Council Member Edward Pollard, huge piles of trash, furniture, and other debris have scarred part of Rampart Street in the Gulfton area of Southwest Houston for years.
Pollard said his office was made aware of the site this year but believes it was abandoned approximately two decades earlier by a telecommunications company that owed taxes on the site.
Pollard said the site blossomed into a homeless encampment.
“There have been fires here. There have been shootings here. There have been drug sales here. It is an unsafe place,” Pollard said.
Pollard said those inhabiting the site established a complex surveillance system to tell “when law enforcement was approaching.”
Pollard said he pulled funds from his own district to clean up the camp.
In November, Houston Mayor John Whitmire called on the city to secure $70 million in funding from sustainable recurring revenue streams to combat homelessness. He said the city had largely been relying on unstable one-time funds for the issue. Most recently, the city relied on approximately $150 million in COVID funds-money that has recently or will soon dry up.
On Thursday, City Housing Director Mike Nicols told ABC13 that the city has recently allocated $3.6 million from its general fund and secured $14 million in federal funds for the initiative.
Read his full statement below.
“The City has made a grant of $3.6 million of General Funds, secured $1 million from Downtown Management District, secured $14M from HCD federal funds and is expecting Houston First Corporation board approval of an additional $2.6M. We are optimistic about subtantial funding from Metro and Harris County. The Homeless Response System was also granted $55 million in Continuum of Care Funds for FY25.
We continue to diligently pursue further funding for Year 1 and 2 of our Plan and also sustainable multi year funding to continue our efforts beyond the initial plan and expect to provide an update on this progress soon.
Addressing street homelessness requires a robust partnership and a comprehensive approach. We are confident in our ability to bring in $70million. As we make progress in ending street homelessness in Houston, Our priority is securing long-term funding, and we are encouraged by the progress we’ve made. Since Mayor Whitmire’s announcement in November, we have achieved several milestones, including the successful Allen’s Landing Initiative. This pilot involved collaboration among the City, law enforcement, local businesses, and the Coalition for the Homeless. Through a unified approach that involved soft engagement and personalized intervention, we connected 19 individuals to supportive housing and restored Allen’s Landing for public use. Each person was engaged with dignity and compassion, which is a core component of this plan.
The success of this pilot confirms that our model is effective and can be replicated to further address homelessness across our city.”
