Special Council Meeting on Homelessness and Unsheltered Strategies - August 19, 2025

Note: The official minutes list the meeting date as Monday, August 18, 2025, but this summary uses the date provided in the instructions (August 19, 2025). The meeting convened at 8:30 a.m. following an Agenda Briefing and recessed at 10:30 a.m., reconvening at approximately 10:45 a.m., adjourning at 11:35 a.m.

The City of Wilmington held a Special Council Meeting to discuss issues related to homelessness and unsheltered strategies. Presentations provided data on the local homeless population, existing services, funding, and a proposed camping ordinance. Councilmembers, staff, service providers, and members of the public engaged in lengthy discussion.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Tony Perez, Living Hope Day Center: Stated that 80-90 people come through his day shelter daily; most are local, not from out of town. Proposed using existing regulations rather than creating new ones and focusing on the handful of individuals causing problems. Estimated that most shelter users are first-time homeless.
• Hillary Faulk Vaughan, Clinical Director, Physicians Alliance Mental Health: Emphasized that individuals with primary psychotic disorders are often victimized and struggle to maintain housing. Reported that in the past five years, about 60 clients have been forced to leave housing due to crimes perpetrated on them; 20-25 are currently unhoused. Stated that 75% of services are in New Hanover County. She advocated for a combination of housing and stabilization care.
• Allen Serkin, Executive Director, Cape Fear Council of Governments: Framed homelessness as a "game of musical chairs" where there are insufficient shelter beds and housing. Noted that shelters are temporary solutions; the real need is permanent housing. Argued that if there is no legal place for homeless individuals to go, they will occupy public or private property, making enforcement difficult.
• One male audience member (unidentified): Invited interested parties to a meeting at the Healing Place at 2:00 PM the following day to discuss issues of people coming from out of county for services and becoming homeless in Wilmington.
• Another male audience member: Suggested bringing homeless individuals into the meeting or going out to them to ask what they need. (This was followed up by staff noting the Lived Experience Committee.)

Discussion Items

Unsheltered Update

• Rachel Schuler, Director of Housing and Neighborhood Services, presented the housing ecosystem, definitions of unsheltered vs. sheltered, and strategies from the Unsheltered Strategy process (September 2024). Key statistics: nationally, 23 per 10,000 experience homelessness; locally, 12 per 10,000; in Wilmington specifically, an estimated 293 persons (approximately 152 per 10,000). The point-in-time (PIT) count (required in January) over 10 nights in 2025 showed about 506 persons, half sheltered, half unsheltered. The warming shelter operated 34 nights during winter 2024-2025 and housed 175 persons on the coldest nights.
• Andrea Stough, Homeless Services Director, Cape Fear Council of Governments (COC), explained that the Cape Fear COC (serving New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender counties) receives relatively low federal funding compared to other regions despite its PIT count. She attributed this to past project renewal issues and competition scores. The return-to-homelessness rate for those placed in housing is less than 5%; 87% of services are provided in New Hanover County.
• Councilmember Andrews asked about the voice of the consumer engagement in 2024. Staff reported that participants wanted the public to know they are not all alcoholics/addicts; many are first-time homeless due to economic shocks.
• Mayor Saffo inquired about the possibility of a summer PIT count. Staff confirmed an off-cycle count would be possible and relatively low cost; they can prepare a budget.
• Councilmember Waddell questioned the incentive to fix the problem when funding is tied to showing how bad it is. Andrea Stough clarified that funding is performance-based, not tied to prevalence.
• Mayor Saffo asked about the total annual funding for providers. Rachel Schuler estimated city-funded shelters operate at $2-3 million annually; total for all homelessness services in the city is around $3-5 million. She noted that building a new facility (e.g., 32 beds) could cost $10 million.
• Mayor Pro-Tem Barnett asked providers to share what they thought Council was missing. Several responses focused on systemic issues, including insufficient housing and supportive services.

Camping Ordinance Discussion

• Meredith Everhart, City Attorney, presented a comparison of existing ordinances and the proposed camping ordinance (modeled on New Hanover County). The proposed ordinance would prohibit camping, sleeping, or occupying city property between 10:00 PM and 7:00 AM, sleeping on city surface parking lots, and sleeping/lying in entrances to city buildings. She highlighted that existing ordinances address many situations (e.g., obstructing sidewalks, trespass) but may be inconsistently applied due to officer discretion and business owner unwillingness to press trespass charges.
• Councilmember Andrews objected to the word "occupy" as vague and likely to lead to arbitrary enforcement, suggesting it be removed. Everhart responded that the term is used elsewhere in city code, but Council can substitute terms like "monopolize" or "obstruct."
• Interim Chief Evangelous stated that the police department wants to avoid arrests; they typically ask people to move voluntarily. He noted about a dozen "frequent fliers" with serious mental illness who cycle through the hospital and streets due to lack of secure treatment facilities. He added that most homeless are not criminals.
• Councilmember Waddell argued that existing mechanisms are enough and proposed focusing on enforcement training rather than a new ordinance. Mayor Saffo and others supported the ordinance as an additional tool, similar to San Francisco's approach combining enforcement with services.
• Mayor Saffo noted that cities like San Francisco have seen success with a mix of aggressive social services and enforcement.

Key Outcomes

• No formal vote was taken on the camping ordinance; it was scheduled for further discussion at the September meeting.
• Directives: City staff were asked to:
  • Prepare a budget and plan for an off-cycle point-in-time count during summer.
  • Provide additional training for police officers on existing quality-of-life ordinances (noise, public urination, aggressive panhandling, etc.), regardless of whether the new ordinance passes.
  • Compile a comprehensive snapshot of total community funding for homelessness (including contributions from county, state, endowments, and private sources).
• Next Steps: The proposed camping ordinance will be brought back for Council action at a future meeting. The dialogue on homelessness strategies will continue, with emphasis on exploring a low-barrier men’s shelter and increasing permanent supportive housing.