RYAN AUTULLO Published October 17, 2022
Article edited for brevity, includes only candidate stances on public safety issues.
The American-Statesman surveyed the candidates in the Austin City Council District 5 race to get their positions on some of the key issues facing the city and their district.
Here are their responses, some of which have been edited for length and clarity:
Ryan Alter
What is something you would change about the city’s policies on homelessness?
Our homelessness policies are not robust enough to meet the level of need we see every day. Clearly our current plans are not working. Sadly, we recently learned that the HEAL initiative, thought to be a bright spot, is actually resulting in half of the people it is serving returning to the streets.
First, we have to do more to prevent individuals from becoming unhoused. Through smart programs like legal representation for those facing eviction and targeted rental assistance, we can most effectively and efficiently tackle this challenge. We also need effective action that will serve the thousands of people who currently need it. To do this, we need to be more efficient with how we provide homeless services by creating stabilization hubs that will serve as the bridge to the housing that is currently in the pipeline.
How would you rate the quality of policing services Austinites are getting as the police department deals with hundreds of officer vacancies, and what can be done to improve those services?
Our guiding principle should be that no person in Austin should feel unsafe, whether that’s walking in your neighborhood, enjoying our outdoor spaces, or interacting with law enforcement. We can make Austin safer and address our staffing shortages if we stop using an outdated way of addressing public safety. Not every situation requires a police response, but when it is needed, the response should be fast, fair, and safe.
To do this we must first utilize the appropriate response professional based on the situation. There are many cases that do not require a police response, such as responding to a mental health crisis or sexual assault. Second, we have to establish clear metrics that our force is expected to meet, such as response times, crime rates, and equity statistics. Finally, it is crucial that we implement strict police oversight policies that hold officers accountable for misuse of force.
Brian Anderson
What is something you would change about the city’s policies on homelessness?
We continue to manage the symptoms without addressing the illness, namely, poverty and joblessness. There are other factors, to be sure, such as mental health issues. But being unhoused itself causes permanent neurological damage, almost ensuring a fate on the streets without outside intervention. I would ask the city to do more by way of monitoring delinquent payments, identifying those at high risk of losing their housing via eviction. From there, temporary alternative housing can be provided and landlords can prevent a loss in income. There is much more to do for those currently unhoused but when doing triage, you must first stop the bleeding.
How would you rate the quality of policing services Austinites are getting as the police department deals with hundreds of officer vacancies, and what can be done to improve those services?
The entire country is in a policing crisis. I do not need to recount all the egregious police misconduct we have seen in Austin or around the country – or the heroic efforts made by those who do their jobs honorably. None of that changes the state of things. Like it or not, Austin must reimagine policing in a way that is palatable to the GOP controlled Texas Legislature, or be ready to fight it out in the courts while another couple of years go by without repairing our justice system. We need social workers and psychologist embedded in response teams. We need to be innovative and test what can bring greater efficacy to police work. No one is doing it. We can and must lead the country in this area.
Stephanie Bazan
What is something you would change about the city’s policies on homelessness?
My change would relate to being proactive versus reactive. To make lasting change, we must increase the pace of units for the unhoused and vulnerable and prioritize supportive services along with housing. We should better support and coordinate organizations providing services to those experiencing homelessness and, importantly, work to intervene sooner for those who are housing insecure, so they do not go from homes to the streets.
Due to an unforeseen circumstance someone can quickly find themselves on the verge of homelessness. For a person working paycheck to paycheck, damage to their car that they can’t afford to repair can prevent them from getting to work or performing their job if it involves driving. There are many examples of sudden hardships that can upend a person’s already tight budget. We need emergency aid. We do have community organizations that have aid, but often it is for current clients and waiting lists are long so those groups do not necessarily help someone in an emergency. The average costs for housing and transportation in Austin make up approximately 47% of household income and as a city we need to scale our resources to include more for homelessness prevention.
How would you rate the quality of policing services Austinites are getting as the police department deals with hundreds of officer vacancies, and what can be done to improve those services?
As Austin grows and changes so must our policing services to provide for the safety of residents and build greater trust within our community. There is opportunity for improvement. We need to expand our efforts to recruit and retain diverse and culturally competent police officers and leadership who look like our Communities of Color. APD has just recently launched its updated academy and is in its second cadet class. Neither of the first two classes were full.
We must also alter police procedures to encourage protection, de-escalation and community service over strict policing. Continuing education on implicit bias is also key to safer communities. We should work together with affected communities and police leadership. To achieve more quality policing services we must have greater transparency, accountability and community partnership.
Ken Craig
What is something you would change about the city’s policies on homelessness?
I would change the city’s response to public space management. The city is not doing enough to address the impact on both housed and unhoused neighbors of the people living in encampments who engage in unsafe, illegal, or threatening behaviors. I have direct experience working with neighbors, unhoused individuals, APD and our Homeless Strategy Office to close encampments in District 5 that posed such threats.
We must also provide housing faster. I will accelerate existing efforts to connect people with immediate shelter and housing. The city is making progress through the HEAL Initiative (which offers immediate shelter and a path for permanent housing to people camping in dangerous spaces) and Esperanza Community (currently building out tiny homes as shelter for 200 people). As a senior policy advisor for the District 5 council office, I led in launching HEAL and worked closely with the Other Ones Foundation to bring utility infrastructure to the Esperanza community.
How would you rate the quality of policing services Austinites are getting as the police department deals with hundreds of officer vacancies, and what can be done to improve those services?
I have worked directly with APD officers and constables to address crime, encampments, responsiveness and community trust. I have been endorsed by Sheriff Sally Hernandez and South Austin Constable Stacy Suits.
To improve services and address vacancies, the city must continue to expand cadet academies to three per year plus shortened classes for experienced officers; add more APD district representatives (officers assigned to help neighbors with specific issues); and revise cadet curriculum for greater accountability.
More opportunities for community members, police and city officials to interact in a cooperative, non-threatening manner is key. Also, the community must trust in official accountability and the Office of Police Oversight must operate with full authority and support of the city.
Aaron Webman
What is something you would change about the city’s policies on homelessness?
Austin now has almost half of its homeless population outside of shelters – the highest rate in the state. This is unacceptable and unsafe for both homeless and non-homeless individuals.
I would focus on the following viable reforms to help solve Texas’s unsheltered homeless problem. The first reform is to redirect Texas’s homelessness grants into providing cheap available shelter and pay-for-performance services. The second is to redirect Texas’s public safety grants into the creation of homeless outreach teams in those cities and to support best-in-practice specialty courts for those with drug addictions and mental health issues. The third is to reform the state’s assisted outpatient treatment and inpatient admittance criteria for individuals undergoing a mental health crisis. The fourth is to use state power to clean up encampments on state land and provide superior shelter alternatives.
How would you rate the quality of policing services Austinites are getting as the police department deals with hundreds of officer vacancies, and what can be done to improve those services?
Many Austinites are increasingly concerned about the state of the city’s public safety and the shortage of police (around 1,600 officers total). I am also concerned.
We must lean into result-oriented policies while recognizing that there are no perfect solutions. We can hold bad cops accountable without being hostile to the entire force. We have to lean into an ecosystem and policies that attract more great officers to the APD while increasing the public’s trust.
For instance, without reliable use-of-force data, it is difficult for law enforcement leadership to make improvements. And misleading information on social media leads to the public losing trust in quality departments. States should require law enforcement agencies to collect and report department-level use-of-force incident data to a state and federal database. Just as data on criminal activity is necessary to fight crime, data on police use-of-force incidents is required to increase trust in law enforcement.
Bill Welch
What is something you would change about the city’s policies on homelessness?
Enforce the camping ban. What is often referred to as homelessness is actually more about drug and alcohol abuse and mental illness. Such afflicted people often prefer not to seek out shelter or housing where they must accept the responsibility and rules associated with being properly housed. I believe it is inhumane to leave these troubled people on the streets and byways. It is also unacceptable to burden our citizens and neighborhoods with the panhandling, petty theft and other crime often associated with people suffering the illnesses above.
The city should establish appropriate response teams that will quickly dispatch to reported camping violations. The team should consist of human services specialists who can properly assess the needs of each individual on a case-by-case basis. The individual should be transported to an appropriate facility based on their needs and the illegal camping site should be vacated and cleaned up. This should not be a police issue except to the extent that an officer should be present in the event violence erupts during the engagement and removal of the camping violation.
How would you rate the quality of policing services Austinites are getting as the police department deals with hundreds of officer vacancies, and what can be done to improve those services?
I rate the quality of our police officers as excellent. I recently completed a ride-along with our department and came away entirely impressed with the professionalism, dedication and work ethic of our police personnel. However, the quality of services is poor due to improper prioritization and funding by our current council. Our police are seriously underfunded, undermanned and overtasked. The City Council must reverse its policy of defunding the police and end the excessive criticism. It is wrong to cast dispersions upon an entire department because of the misdeeds of a few. I’m all for demanding officer restraint and accountability, but the current trend is to completely tie the hands of officers and limit their ability to keep Austin streets safe. I believe that the top priority of our municipal government is to provide for public safety. This includes proper funding, training, and equipping of our police, fire and EMS departments. We deserve to have the highest-quality, best paid, best trained and best equipped public safety personnel and operations possible.