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The idea sounds simpler than it is, as if we鈥檙e just rousting people from the washes and putting them in apartments 鈥� addictions and mental illness be damned. That鈥檚 not really the case.

Mayor Regina Romero, who using housing-first policies in 2019, proudly pointed last week to the Jan. 25 visit of the as evidence Tucson is addressing our homelessness crisis the right way.

鈥淯SICH is here to work with us because we have had success in permanently housing over 220 folks through Housing First,鈥� she said in

Still, the approach has its detractors, among them the two challengers who have filed to run against Romero, a Democrat, in this year鈥檚 election. Ed Ackerley and Zach Yentzer, both independents, say they oppose the emphasis on Housing First as Tucson grapples with an addiction and homelessness crisis.

鈥淗ousing First has a place with a certain sector of our homeless population, who are maybe struggling with eviction or job loss and need to have a supporting housing format to get between life phases,鈥� Yentzer said in an interview. 鈥淲hen it comes to those experiencing mental health and substance abuse, we need more and different solutions.鈥�

Ackerley took a similar position: 鈥淗ousing first proposes giving a homeless person access to low barrier housing,鈥� he said via text. 鈥淪imply giving a home to a homeless person without addressing underlying issues of mental illness, drug abuse, or criminal behavior is not the solution.鈥�

Tucson officials say that鈥檚 not what鈥檚 happening at all, that offering services is part of the program.

At the Jan. 24 council meeting, Romero said, 鈥淗ousing First makes sure that each person has a roof over their heads, a warm meal, a place to take a shower and wash their clothes, and at the same time, we work to help residents get all they need to move out of homelessness more permanently.鈥�

Promise and challenges

If you walked around Santa Rita Park late last week, you could see signs of both the promise and challenges of the problem the Tucson metro area is trying to confront.

City officials closed and cleaned the park Tuesday, after giving long advance warning. On Friday, it was noticeably emptier, though at least one tent was back up, and some people appeared to be doing drugs by the bathroom.

For the first time I can remember, having visited Santa Rita occasionally over the years, I saw a significant number of skateboarders in the skate park and people playing basketball on the court. It鈥檚 possible, though, that they were so outnumbered before that I didn鈥檛 notice them.

As to the homeless people who have for years gathered and slept there, 鈥淣obody left that park without having a resource for shelter,鈥� said 鈥淭hat doesn鈥檛 mean that they took it.鈥�

Champion was hired in 2021, when Tucson launched its Housing First program. She had worked for years at .

Tom Litwicki, who directs Old Pueblo, told me there are about three decades of supporting that approach. What underlies it, he said, is the idea that people can鈥檛 address the root causes of their homelessness while living outside, stressed and vulnerable.

As Champion put it, 鈥淗ow do you get out of your addiction or your mental illness without even having a place to sleep at night, let alone a place to use a bathroom or cook a meal?鈥�

The city typically brings people into transitional housing at places like the newly purchased Wildcat Inn, where they receive services, even as basic as training in how to be a good tenant, she said. Then they move to permanent housing.

鈥楯ust moving people around鈥�

One of Yentzer鈥檚 main critiques of the approach is its scale. The Wildcat Inn has 70 beds and a capacity of 96. He noted it cost the city $3 million to buy and $800,000 per year to operate, and the city has spent around $10 million to buy the Wildcat Inn plus two other properties that bring around 50 more beds into service.

鈥淲e鈥檙e not seeing a return on investment that I think is scaled to the need of the community,鈥� he said.

He proposes drastically increasing shelter capacity while making permanent housing contingent on users earning it through addressing problems such as addiction. He also wants to increase the use of drug courts that give people the choice between treatment and the criminal-justice system.

鈥淲hat we鈥檙e doing, because we don鈥檛 have enough shelter at scale, is just moving people around,鈥� Yentzer said.

He and Ackerley also proposed similar concepts of a center for everyone on the street to come into to be evaluated and start receiving services. Yentzer called it a 鈥渘avigation hub,鈥� while Ackerley called it a 鈥渢ransition center.鈥�

Ackerley, too, says we need need to use the criminal-justice system more as a lever 鈥� something city officials have viewed skeptically.

鈥淚ncarceration does not usually result in somebody coming out of jail in a better position than they went in, if they went in with substance abuse,鈥� Tucson Police Chief Chad Kasmar said at the Jan. 24 council meeting.

Ackerley told me, 鈥淟awless behavior needs to be adjudicated, and they need to be held accountable.鈥�

鈥淲e can鈥檛 lump all homeless people into a group and say they all need low-barrier housing,鈥� he added

Ackerley and Yentzer both cite the as using an approach closer to what they want, often labeled 鈥渢reatment first.鈥� The mission鈥檚 Center of Opportunity, on South Palo Verde Road, is not a 鈥渓ow barrier鈥� shelter, unlike the city facilities and some others using the Housing First approach.

Lisa Chastain, the CEO of Gospel Rescue Mission, told me the center requires residents to be sober while there, although they will hold a place for someone who goes to detox. They also do not admit people with serious mental illness unless they鈥檙e under a doctor鈥檚 care, she said, though most residents take some sort of psychoactive medications.

With such significant conditions, the center is not always full. On Friday, 130 out of 350 beds were empty.

Tucson鈥檚 biggest issue

It struck me while interviewing people about Housing First this week that the differences in approach may not be as big as they seem. Both sides of the debate try to put unhoused people in temporary facilities and offer services that help them into more permanent homes and more stable lives.

鈥淲hat they鈥檙e doing is confusing Housing First with housing only,鈥� Litwicki said of the approach鈥檚 critics.

The biggest difference is whether to have any conditions or barriers to the temporary housing that gets people off the street. I鈥檓 somewhat drawn to the idea that it鈥檚 not our job as a city to solve the deepest problems in people鈥檚 lives, but simply to get people housed, and do more only as possible.

鈥淭o get housing, you shouldn鈥檛 have to stop drinking 鈥� you should have to be a good tenant,鈥� Litwicki said by way of example. 鈥淚f they have a drinking problem, they鈥檒l probably have a hard time being a good tenant. But it鈥檚 not my place to tell them they need to stop drinking.鈥�

For her part, Chastain said she鈥檚 not for 鈥渆ither-or鈥� solutions but for 鈥渆verything鈥� as the metro area grapples with the problem. 鈥淲e need Housing First, we need Gospel Rescue Mission, we need Salvation Army, we need Primavera,鈥� she said.

No issue is bigger in Tucson this year. So it鈥檚 right and good, I think, to hash out how well we are doing and whether this approach will ever reach the scale the addiction and homelessness crisis requires.

Tim Steller is an opinion columnist. A 25-year veteran of reporting and editing, he digs into issues and stories that matter in the Tucson area, reports the results and tells you his conclusions. Contact him at tsteller@tucson.com or 520-807-7789. On Twitter: @senyorreporter