We as concerned residents of Cuyahoga County are seeking to make available to all of our sheltered and unsheltered homeless population access to hotel rooms where they would have the ability to shelter in place and practice proper sanitary techniques as set forth by the CDC for the remainder of the shelter in place guidelines that have been put out by the CDC and the State of Ohio. Keeping the homeless population safe is important both for its own sake and for the tremendous benefit it will have for preventing the spread of coronavirus among the general population. We are particularly concerned that all unsheltered homeless people who are willing to move to safe housing in a hotel or motel during the crisis be given the opportunity to do so.
We are concerned about our sheltered and unsheltered neighbors being at higher risk for contracting the coronavirus due to preexisting heath issues. We also recognize that the sheltered and unsheltered are more likely to face increased anxiety due to these uncertain times. Therefore we ask for wrap around medical and mental health services be available to them. We also ask that face masks and hand sanitizer be made available to all sheltered and unsheltered neighbors that want them.
While there is a plan in place for the sheltered to practice physical distancing (though again it should be expanded to allow for all who are staying in the shelter to have the option of a hotel room), very little public financial support has been made available to those who are unsheltered. Most of the financial (and otherwise) support for protecting the unsheltered has been through private donations and volunteers. We ask that the County to provide the necessary financial resources in their role of ensuring the safety of its residents including the sheltered and unsheltered.
In addition to support for housing and medical and mental health support, we seek the money to properly staff the hotel facilities with staff members who are familiar with trauma informed care to help meet the needs of our sheltered and unsheltered people and provide some stability for them.
Please email and / or phone the Cuyahoga County Council members listed below and express the concerns stated above
Yvonne Conwell
Office: (216) 698-2017
yconwell@cuyahogacounty.us.
Chair of Health and Human Services committee
Pernel Jones Office:
(216) 698-2019
pjones@cuyahogacounty.us
Member Health and Human Services committee
Dan Brady Office:
(216) 698-2014
dbrady@cuyahogacounty.us
President County Council
