INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – More than 200 people showed up Monday night at the Southeast Community Services facility for a discussion about a homeless encampment in Fountain Square.

The talk reached a fever pitch.

But rather than address the Fountain Square homelessness, Indianapolis city government leaders spent much of the meeting discussing an upcoming homeless pilot program that won’t start until August.

The new program won’t deal with the Fountain Square encampment on Leonard Street.

Tony Moody has lived in Fountain Square for six years. He said residents have been dealing with the homelessness issue for a while. “We have to deal with people sleeping on the doorsteps, people in the alleys people screaming and yelling. I mean, you go by Fountain Square, we have our fountains. Nothing worse then going there Saturday morning and people are taking baths in the fountains.”

The upcoming homeless program called Streets To Home aims to house 300-350 homeless people in the course of a year. The $8.1 million program under the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention & Prevention was designed to be a pilot program, so it cannot be used for the Leonard Street encampment. The city government’s Office of Public Health and Safety instead will close the encampment.

A representative for the Office of Public Health and Safety said the homeless population will be brought to Wheeler Mission and other similar programs. But, critics say, it’s a temporary solution, with the homeless going in and out of shelters.

Moody said, “It’s a mess every day you deal with it” and he’s dealt with it for years.

Chelsea Haring-Cozzie, executive director of Coalition for Homelessness Intervention & Prevention, told the gathering about the upcoming program, “It shouldn’t be about displacement and moving people along, neighborhood to neighborhood. It shouldn’t be about criminalizing folks. They need access to housing.”

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department last week issued notices for the homeless campers to leave the camp by Aug. 11. The notices said any personal items left behind will discarded — the complete opposite of how the Streets to Home Program works.

Streets To Home organizers say the program has worked in New Orleans and Houston, and it can work in Indianapolis. The organizers said they just need time to test the pilot and later make it official. The organizers said the upcoming program will not only give a home to people who need one, but also resources so they can keep their place.

Travis Dalton is homeless. He said getting the letter “kind of gets me angry a little but not much. Me and my sister were trying to find an apartment to go to anyway.”

For some, there is no other place to go. Samuel Chicago said, “This can happen to you at any point. It can happen tomorrow. You just don’t know. You never know when you can end up just like us, so cherish what you have. Don’t judge us.”

Resources for homeless people

• Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department’s homeless unit: (317) 327-6506.
• Horizon House: (317) 423-8909, Ext. 359; or (317) 396-6359.
• Wheeler Mission: (317) 686-6239.
• Assessment and Intervention Center: (317) 327-8734.

Related coverage on WISHTV.com

• Residents of Indianapolis homeless camp scramble for new housing
• Homeless encampment expands in Indianapolis neighborhood
• Homelessness increases by 7% in Marion County in 2025
• Indianapolis sees 26% decrease in veteran homelessness, HVAF report says
• Man found dead at homeless encampment on Tibbs Avenue; IMPD investigating
• Mayor Hogsett announces Streets to Home Indy initiative, 350 people to be housed
• Compass on Washington making a difference for Indianapolis homeless community
• Homeless woman highlights challenges of living on the streets

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