Omaha city leaders address nearby homeless camp

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – It was a packed house at West Hills Church Monday evening. Several Westgate residents and city members sat down and discussed a critical issue affecting metro Omaha: homelessness.

“This is a challenge that I face as a city council member in my district, my colleagues and people across the country do,” said Omaha City Councilman Danny Begley.

Monday's discussion focused on one specific area: the bridge south of 84th Street and Grover Street. A few weeks ago, floods swept away a homeless camp.

“It caused significant damage to those who were there, but it also enticed a lot of others to come,” said Terry Anderson, a member of the Westgate Neighborhood Association.

City officials don't know of anyone who has been injured, but they say situations like these raise safety concerns for campers that they need to address.

“If there are people camping on the trails, then [city officials] If we can come out and tell them that they need to leave because of the public safety issue that flooding poses, we don't want anyone to lose their life,” Begley said.

The city's Homeless Team conducts assessments at different locations where camping is present based on three elements which are community impact, homeless impact and community impact. environment.

“If cleaning is necessary, we plan for those things,” said Tamara Dwyer, Omaha’s homeless services coordinator. “Now if there are people there, we talk to them if we can talk to them and see if they are connected to any services.”

Dwyer believes there's still a lot of work to be done to address metro homelessness, while Westgate residents like Alyce Roggenbach think the city's plan is a good place to start.

“It’s pretty cool,” Roggenbach said. “I'm really impressed.”

Anyone who sees a homeless encampment in metro Omaha is encouraged to report it to the city's homeless services by calling 402-427-9900.

For resources on nearby shelters, click here.

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