[WATCH] Homeless task force meets

September 12, 2019–12:56 p.m.

STAFF REPORTS

A newly-formed homelessness task force held its first meeting Thursday.

The task force was the result of discussions during a recent Rome City Public Safety Committee meeting following the introduction of new ordinances aimed at prohibiting urban camping and aggressive panhandling and most of the discussion Thursday was centered on those proposals.

Some who initially had reservations about the ordinances indicated that they are now on board.

City Manager Sammy Rich suggested reviving a 2009 plan called “Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness One Person at a Time,” which was never fully implemented.

Everyone who spoke was in agreement that the issue of homelessness is a community issue and it’s going to take everyone working together to solve it.