Street-level teams ramp up efforts to address issues downtown and beyond

There’s no easy solution to helping people on the street, but two organizations are bringing forward different approaches aiming to help.

Beginning this month, South Dakota Urban Indian Health plans to hire three to five additional people to support its Wo’Okiye Project after being selected by the city of Sioux Falls to pilot its homeless street outreach program.

The effort started in May but began with conversations among South Dakota Urban Indian Health, the Sioux Falls Police Department and Minnehaha County a year ago “about how we could help our Native relatives who are unhoused in the downtown area,” said Michaela Seiber, CEO of the nonprofit organization.

“Ultimately, the goal of the project is to really serve as another option instead of law enforcement being involved.”

The organization began outreach in May using existing staff.

“We take turns going out on shifts based on our schedule,” Seiber said. “We’ll use one of our Urban vehicles and go out to areas where we know people are camping out or hanging out and go with water, Gatorade, a first-aid kit, condoms, snacks if we have some available and just things we know – sage or sweetgrass to smudge.”

Her team might spend up to 20 minutes “if people have high need” or just hand out water and move on.

“We will stop and talk to those folks when they’re panhandling and try to figure out what they’re trying to get money for to panhandle and let them know there are rules around panhandling.”

They also will help connect Native Americans with appointments at Urban Indian Health or other resources and help get them to the appointments, she said.

“The goal once we have more folks hired is that we are responding to calls and we have a phone line concerned community members and downtown-area folks can call with concerns,” Seiber said. “We’re hiring a dispatcher, and we’re working closely with law enforcement.”

Dispatch initially will be done from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, but the goal is to start a schedule for evenings and weekends once people are trained and the times and areas of highest need are determined.

“The biggest surprise for all of us is the sheer volume of people that are banned from our shelters,” Seiber said.

“They have nowhere to go besides the streets. … Right now, people are OK with staying on the streets, but it’s really hard. Emergency housing is really difficult right now.”

Often, Native Americans are willing to come to Urban Indian Health’s facility, she added.

“They might just need to drink some water, eat some food and just take a nap for a little bit,” she said. “People are willing to come hang out here at our location with us, and that’s an easier convincing. Since we are a Native organization and can bring in the cultural aspect, that helps so much.”

The Wo’Okiye Project pilot effort with the city, supported by $175,000, will serve everyone regardless of race and extend beyond the downtown core with boundaries from Minnesota to Cleveland avenues and from Russell to 14th streets.

“But for right now, we are really honed in on the Bishop Dudley area, the statue of David and some key areas of encampment,” Seiber said.

That supplements efforts already underway from Downtown Sioux Falls Inc., which this year partnered with the national organization Block by Block to enhance its downtown ambassador program.

The organization is in more than 100 North American cities and has been for decades, so “it brings industry best practices to the table, where we don’t have to try and reinvent the wheel,” DTSF president Joe Batcheller said.

“They know what they’re doing and know how to address different issues, so it’s been great to tap into that knowledge and their resources.”

Martin Dill helped pilot the downtown ambassador program in recent years, and the goal is to eventually give him the help of seven full-time equivalent staff.

“Most of them will be full time, I think there will probably be one or two part time, and we’ll have a couple seasonal as well because the work does drop off in the wintertime,” Batcheller said.

Ambassadors can be recognized downtown by their red shirts and divide time between cleaning and safety duties. You might find them picking up trash, emptying cans, clearing leaves and other debris from gutters or sweeping up.

Some are patrolling on e-bikes and others are walking throughout high-traffic downtown areas.

“We’re still in the process of ramping up,” Batcheller said. “We haven’t been able to get to seven FTEs yet, but we’re getting there.”

On the safety side, ambassadors do everything from hand out information to visitors and provide directions to check in with businesses to ensure they know about safety resources in place. That includes even providing an escort to employees who feel unsure about returning to their vehicles.

In other cases, ambassadors have helped escort unruly people out of businesses or connect people on the street with resources.

“It’s providing the transportation for them if necessary and also being an extra set of eyes on the street,” Batcheller said.

An app tracks all activity and allows DTSF to see where the ambassadors are needed or making an impact, he said.

Calls for safety-related issues have ebbed and flowed through spring and summer, he said.

“I would say it’s on par with previous years,” he said. “A lot of it circles back to mental health or addiction issues.”

Batcheller anticipates his organization will work well with Urban Indian Health.

“I think it’s a good approach they take. They treat everyone as family; there’s no judgment of the folks they’re dealing with,” he said.

“We’re going to have to figure out how to work with them the best we can. When we come across a situation where it’s their expertise, I think it’s a matter of having good communication and trying to be with people until UIH can come connect folks that might need help.”