FORT WAYNE, IND. (WOWO) A proposed homeless services center near East Washington Boulevard and the Fort Wayne Rescue Mission is drawing debate among city officials, downtown stakeholders and residents, with questions centered on location, public safety, business impact and the city’s long-term strategy for addressing homelessness.

Appearing on Fort Wayne’s Morning News with Kayla Blakeslee, Fort Wayne City Councilman Russ Jehl said he believes the city is moving too quickly toward approving the project without broader discussion about whether downtown is the appropriate site for a large-scale low-barrier shelter.

Supporters of the proposal have argued the location makes sense because many unhoused individuals already live in or near downtown Fort Wayne and because services are already concentrated in the area. Critics, however, have raised concerns about how a larger homeless services operation could affect businesses, investment, development and public safety in the city’s core business district.

During the interview, host Kayla Blakeslee summarized the debate by noting that “supporters say the location makes a whole lot of sense” while critics worry “putting a large-scale homeless shelter in the heart of downtown Fort Wayne could negatively impact businesses, public safety, development, investment.”

Jehl responded that the issue involves “more nuance” than a simple disagreement over homelessness services.

“Even if my opinion is that it’s a bad location, I’m constantly told I’m just an idiot councilman. I don’t know what I’m talking about,” Jehl said during the interview.

Jehl said he previously approached the Downtown Improvement District in March to encourage public discussion about the proposed site before the matter reaches the City Council for a formal vote.

“I said, ‘Hey, this is where it’s going. It’s not a secret. Speak now or forever hold your peace,’” Jehl said. According to Jehl, the organization declined to weigh in publicly on the proposal.

“They said, ‘Yeah, that sounds like kind of a controversial thing. I think we’re going to stick to just planning parties and not touch that,’” Jehl said.

Jehl argued that because the proposal is expected to come before the council as an up-or-down vote tied to funding and a complete plan, opportunities for discussion about the location itself may become limited.

“It’s not going to be a ‘Hey, what do you think about this location,’” Jehl said.

The councilman also questioned the methodology behind selecting the downtown site, pointing to what he described as significant public and private investment in downtown Fort Wayne over the past decade.

“There’s been a billion dollars of investment downtown,” Jehl said. “Approximately a half billion of it has been public funds, all to create a positive downtown experience.”

Jehl said placement decisions matter because of the concentration of businesses, housing and entertainment venues in the downtown core.

“And where things are matter,” he said. “This is right in not just downtown, but the central business district downtown.”

Jehl also referenced the relocation of the Rescue Mission from what he described as the “edge of downtown to the middle of downtown,” saying he was “not pleased with the results.”

“If before we double down on that and potentially create a large blast radius in a big part of downtown, we should be able to defend the methodology,” Jehl said.

He said city leaders have largely justified the site because homeless individuals are already in the area and because the property is comparatively inexpensive to renovate.

“The methodology is simply, these are the people that are experiencing homelessness are already over there and it’s a cheap place to renovate,” Jehl said. “It doesn’t seem like a good enough methodology for picking the location.”

Jehl repeatedly called for broader participation in the decision-making process, including input from the business community, nonprofit organizations and commercial real estate professionals.

“Let’s have methodology,” Jehl said. “Let’s have both the business community and the not-for-profit community a part of the decision-making.”

When asked where he would prefer the shelter to be located, Jehl said he believes “an edge of downtown would be more appropriate,” though he emphasized that he wanted a formal process for evaluating locations rather than making the decision individually.

“That’s the trap,” Jehl said. “Okay, Jehl, you tell us where you want it so we can yell at you.”

Jehl also raised concerns about state law involving registered sex offenders and shelters located near schools, parks and youth facilities. He noted the proposed location is near the YMCA and within proximity to a park.

“If we’re really going to have a low-barrier shelter, unless we’re going to screen for sex offenders and turn them away — which then it’s not a low-barrier shelter — this isn’t within a thousand feet of a school,” Jehl said. “It’s right across from the YMCA. It’s within a thousand feet of a park.”

The discussion also turned to the broader role of government in addressing homelessness. Blakeslee referenced comments made earlier in the week by Allen County Commissioner Ron Turpin, who said nonprofits and churches — rather than government — should lead homelessness efforts.

Jehl said he shares some of that perspective but acknowledged that city government remains directly involved in the issue.

“Fort Wayne is somewhere between Donald Trump and Gavin Newsom,” Jehl said. “We need to find a compromise.”

Jehl criticized approaches he said rely solely on expanding services without enforcement measures.

“Even Gavin Newsom is saying that the West Coast can’t just continue to create new services,” Jehl said. “Donald Trump says let’s arrest our way out of it. Most people don’t like that. Let’s find some combination.”

Jehl proposed a strategy that would combine shelter services with enforcement on homeless encampments and expanded use of drug court programs.

“We need to have some sort of better enforcement on encampments,” Jehl said. “You can’t just have people perpetually camping near schools, near high-density residential areas.”

He also said drug courts have demonstrated success in helping people experiencing homelessness who also struggle with addiction.

“What actually works well? Drug courts work,” Jehl said. “There are programs that do work that actually get people back into society.”

Jehl said the mayor’s administration has been transparent about the proposed location but maintained that community concerns have not been fully addressed.

“The mayor has been transparent on the location,” Jehl said. “But when she comes with the full plan and funding, saying, ‘Let’s turn it down,’ then we’re not just square one. We are way back.”

The councilman said residents in neighborhoods near downtown have already approached him with concerns.

“My constituents and neighborhood association members, especially closer to downtown that I represent within my district, have long since approached me and said, ‘Hey councilman, this is where it’s going. Is this really smart?’” Jehl said.

He added that downtown businesses have also contacted him privately about the proposal.

“Some businesses downtown have long since approached me,” Jehl said. “There’s been a lot of concerns.”

No official vote date has yet been announced publicly for the proposal. During the interview, Jehl said he had “been told for months that it is in process.”