Safe Move Tulsa Update: Two More Encampments Decommissioned, 13 Additional People Housed

Tulsa leaders launch www.SafeMoveTulsa.com to track efforts

Today, the City of Tulsa, Housing Solutions, and other A Way Home for Tulsa (AWH4T) partners announced the successful decommissioning of Tulsa’s fourth and fifth encampments under the new Safe Move Tulsa strategy, resulting in an additional 13 people housed.

To track the work, www.SafeMoveTulsa.com has been launched - a resource anyone can use to see the location of closed encampments, along with additional information about the strategy.

As background, the purpose of Safe Move Tulsa is to:

• End street homelessness and street sleeping (68 people housed so far demonstrating continued progress to the goal of 300 in Phase 1 of Safe Move Tulsa - 26 pets have also been rehomed with their owners)

• Close encampments and ensure they stay closed (5 closed so far, all of which have not returned)

• Free up space at Tulsa's shelters and help triage individuals to services more quickly

• Ensure shelters have the space and resources to quickly assist individuals to end their homelessness so that fewer people end up sleeping outside or forming new encampments

• Scale our homelessness support system's ability to provide one-time, low-cost interventions for people who recently became homeless, and provide more intensive housing and case management for people who need deeper support to stabilize

“Safe Move Tulsa is proving that when you focus your resources around a common goal and put your investments where your needs are - great things can happen," Mayor Nichols said. "I am so proud of all the partners who continue this work, and I'm eager to sustain the progress we've made so we can reach functional zero homelessness by 2030."

Thanks to Safe Move Tulsa, every individual who has received housing through this strategy is remaining in housing so far with support from YWCA Tulsa, who with nine case managers, meet with clients weekly or up to daily help them stabilize in housing, access healthcare services, including mental health services and substance use treatment, and work on their individualized plan for long-term stability and recovery. As more people get housed from Safe Move Tulsa, additional case managers from more A Way Home for Tulsa partners will be deployed in the coming weeks to provide intensive support to clients as they reenter housing.

"Our team at the YWCA is honored to be able to walk alongside each of these Tulsans to build trust and find dignity by establishing a new home again," YWCA Tulsa CEO Julie Davis said. "Our team will be with these individuals and families for the next year supporting them on their pathway back to stability."

Aerial view of decommissioned encampment

The newly decommissioned encampments announced today include:

96th & Riverside (Closed, 5 people housed): Combined with the decommissioned encampment at Eagle’s Nest just north of this location, all long-term encampments on the west side of Riverside Drive from Casino Drive to 96th Street have been decommissioned, with the land returned to its intended use. No-trespass signs will be placed alongside the River Trails network. Because this site is public property, the City will remove more than 60 cubic yards of debris from the area.

To the north, no long-term camping has returned to Eagle's Nest and business leaders have celebrated the effort, including Joe Farney, Director of Business Development at Muscogee Nation Gaming Enterprises:

“What stands out at Eagle’s Nest is not just the initial action, but the ongoing response. Safety and environmental conditions improved, and the City and TPD have continued to monitor and protect the area to ensure it remains a preserve, not an encampment.”

11th and Skelly Drive (Closed, 8 people housed): This area, located just to the south of a café and church, has been home to encampments for the better part of the last decade. The site consists of a mix of mostly private property with a little bit of public property. On the public property side, 25 cubic yards of debris will be removed. The private property owner will also clean up their portion of the site.

“We are pleased to see that Safe Move Tulsa is delivering tangible results by connecting people to the resources they need while continuing to make sure encampments remain closed to alleviate the strain on local businesses and residents,” said Tulsa Leadership Council spokesman Charlie Hannema. "Our members, which include many of Tulsa’s largest businesses and philanthropic organizations, will continue to advocate for strong coordination between the public and private sectors to ensure this positive momentum continues.”

Web Portal Launch

Tulsa leaders also announced today the launch of www.SafeMoveTulsa.com – an online resource to track up-to-date statistics and information about Safe Move Tulsa. The website includes a detailed map of where the decommissioned encampments are, in addition to other helpful information.

The website also helps show the long-term vision of the strategy, showing what's needed to keep the momentum going.