MADISON, Wis. — City leaders are pursuing a new pair of sites as potential alternatives to the Reindahl Park encampment.
In an email to News 3 Now, community development director Jim O’Keefe said Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway is pushing for staff to get both sites connected to public water and a sanitary sewer.
“The intent is to use these locations as an alternative to the encampment at Reindahl Park and, ultimately to close that encampment so that the park can return to normal park usage,” O’Keefe said. “Importantly these sites would be staffed, or managed, by groups with experience dealing with homeless population.”
O’Keefe said the city already owns one of the proposed sites, but the other still needs to be bought by the city. O’Keefe went on to say he couldn’t share details about either site’s location.
The money for the purchase of the second site and improvements to both would come from funds the city received via the American Rescue Plan. O’Keefe said $2 million of the city’s allocation was set aside to support people experiencing homelessness.
Both of the new sites, if approved by the city’s Common Council, would be able to accommodate up to 30 campsites. O’Keefe said there are currently an estimated 40-50 people staying at the Reindahl Park encampment.
O’Keefe said finalizing plans for the two sites is a “top priority” for Rhodes-Conway, but did not provide details on an expected timeline.
The news of plans for two new sites comes just over a month after a proposal to end the encampment failed to get Council approval.
Earlier this spring, those staying at the encampment were told by the city to leave. In a Council meeting a week later, city officials reversed course, citing legal challenges.
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