SPOKANE, Wash. — After extensive conversations with the community, Spokane City Council has decided to hold round table discussions about deferred homeless ordinances.
"We have heard a lot of feedback and it is clear that the community is very divided on this," says Kitty Klitzke, Spokane District 3 City Council member.
The focus of the press conference on September 5 was shifted to an ordinance sponsored by Council members Navarrete and Klitzke from a 2023 Spokane Human Rights Commission resolution to add "housing status" to the city's list of protected classes and strengthen protections against discrimination in hiring, employment, property rights and privacy rights of individuals experiencing homelessness.
City Council President, Betsy Wilkerson, drove home the fact that we need to deal with these complex issues together and that we shouldn't compare the Spokane community to others across the country.
"We do things different here, and we focus on what we can do for our community," said Wilkerson.
These round table discussions are meant to make sure that everyone gets a chance to make their voice heard from every different community in the area. As well as educate the community on how they work in accordance with the law.
According to a release from the City Council, The first round table discussion is on Tuesday, Sept. 10, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Central Library, 906 W. Main Ave., in room Events B. The city says additional roundtables will be scheduled every three weeks.
"We are not putting anyone aside, we want everyone just to come together and work on this issue that the city of Spokane has," says Lili Navarrete, Spokane District 2 Council member.