Despite a decrease in scheduled encampment closures city-wide, continued immediate dispositions at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library have caused heightened uncertainty among those who frequently sleep outside its doors.
The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services (DMHHS), the agency which leads the city’s homeless encampment clearings, mainly closes encampments in one of two ways. The first is a standard disposition, when DMHHS notifies residents a clearing will take place at least a week in advance. The second, an immediate disposition, requires less notice and is not publicly announced. According to DMHHS, this fall, the city has conducted 18 immediate dispositions and 20 standard dispositions.
Three of the immediate dispositions have taken place at the MLK Library, which has long been a refuge for people experiencing homelessness in the city because of its resources and proximity to nearby services such as the Downtown Day Services Center. The library’s free Wi-Fi, computer access, and amenities are valuable supports. In winter months, the city’s public libraries act as critical warming zones…