FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO) — Fort Wayne City Council is set to vote Tuesday night on the proposed Anchor Resource Center, and Councilman Russ Jehl says a recent trip to Lafayette has reinforced his concerns about the location of the proposed downtown facility.

The proposed 24-hour, low-barrier homeless resource center is planned for 333 East Washington Boulevard.

Jehl traveled to Lafayette last week to tour the Lafayette Transitional Housing Center, a facility Fort Wayne officials have pointed to as a model for the Anchor Resource Center.

Jehl said he was impressed with the facility itself and the people operating it, but he came away concerned after speaking with businesses and residents in the surrounding neighborhood.

“I thought that the facility appeared to be very well run. I had a lot of very, very caring people working there,” Jehl said during an interview Monday on WOWO’s Fort Wayne’s Morning News.

But Jehl said what he saw outside the facility raised questions about whether a similar operation belongs in the middle of Fort Wayne’s central business district.

“I stood outside and looked around. I thought, is this appropriate for the center of downtown? Is this appropriate for our central business district?” he said.

Location remains Jehl’s biggest concern

Jehl pointed out that Lafayette intentionally did not place its facility downtown.

He said community leaders there told him Lafayette’s circumstances are different from Fort Wayne’s and that the city needs to determine the appropriate location for itself.

Jehl said he observed people outside the Lafayette facility who were not necessarily accessing services inside the building.

He described the facility as being large enough to develop what he called its own “gravity” and “orbit,” with an effect extending into the surrounding neighborhood.

Jehl said he also spoke with businesses near the Lafayette facility.

“The businesses said it is very difficult now to bring new customers to that area because of the stigma of that area,” Jehl said.

He said that experience convinced him that the location of a facility like the Anchor Resource Center matters significantly.

“It will have an impact on the neighborhood. It will have an impact on the businesses,” Jehl said.

Jehl remains particularly concerned about the proposed Fort Wayne location because it is near the YMCA, a school and other downtown businesses.

Questions remain about the cost

Jehl also questioned whether the city has firm enough numbers for the renovation and ongoing operation of the proposed facility.

He said he formally requested construction information in July, including a bid and construction drawings, but said council members are being asked to vote based on estimates.

“Has anybody seen a bid? Has anyone seen a construction drawing?” Jehl asked.

Jehl said he does not believe council should approve the project without firm construction numbers, particularly because Allen County previously pursued purchasing the same building and had significantly higher projected costs.

He also raised concerns about the city’s operating-cost projections.

According to Jehl, the administration initially provided council with operating figures that contained multiple math errors. He said the city revised the numbers approximately 10 days ago.

Jehl pointed to a proposed $2,000 annual cost for trash removal as one example. He said Lafayette uses two dumpsters that cost approximately $800 per month.

Jehl said the revised financial projections still show approximately a $1 million gap between projected revenue and new expenditures.

He also said he believes some of the expenditure estimates remain inaccurate.

Zoning, police outpost and other questions

Jehl said the property is not currently zoned correctly for a homeless shelter and that additional steps will be required.

He also said he still has questions about the 1,000-foot rule involving certain offenders.

Another concern is the city’s proposal to establish a police outpost at the facility.

Jehl said that addition was announced late in the process and would carry additional costs.

“Each police officer is in excess of $100,000 to employ,” Jehl said. “And by the way, an outpost is an expensive thing to build or to remodel.”

Jehl argued that those are fundamental questions that should be resolved before council votes.

“These are basic things that any proposal should have answers to at this point,” he said.

Jehl expects vote could split along party lines

Asked whether he believes the Anchor Resource Center proposal will pass Tuesday night, Jehl said his “gut” tells him the votes are not there.

He predicted the vote could break down along partisan lines, which he called unfortunate for the city.

Jehl emphasized that he can only speak for his own vote.

“My own vote is that this will have a blast radius,” Jehl said.

After visiting Lafayette, Jehl said he is convinced the facility will have a significant impact on its surrounding area.

He said he has been raising concerns about the proposed location since earlier this year and believes downtown is not the appropriate location for a facility of this size and scope.

“This is just not the right location for something of this gravity, this magnitude,” Jehl said.

Flock cameras also discussed

During Monday’s interview, Jehl was also asked about the ongoing controversy surrounding Fort Wayne’s Flock license-plate cameras.

Mayor Sharon Tucker has said the city’s 36 Flock cameras will ultimately be removed following City Council’s rejection of funding for the system.

Jehl said he does not yet know when the cameras will come down but praised Tucker for stepping in and reassuring the public.

Jehl said allowing police to continue the program without council approval could have damaged public trust.

“The mayor made the right call here, and I appreciate that,” Jehl said.

Jehl said the Flock system was implemented through the police department and executive branch without council approval, and he believes the executive branch should now handle unwinding the system.

Asked whether City Council had ever previously voted on Flock, Jehl said he did not recall such a vote.

He said grants such as the one involved with Flock are generally handled through the executive branch rather than coming before council.

The Fort Wayne City Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday night on the proposed Anchor Resource Center.