A June U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowed cities to enforce bans on camping in public — in practice, allowing police to issue fines to people experiencing homelessness. But Boise Mayor Lauren McLean pushed back, saying it would not affect the city’s approach to homelessness and affordable housing.
“Criminalizing homelessness has never, and will never, solve the problems associated with homelessness,” McLean said in a statement on the day of the ruling. “We must address the root causes with proven strategies, like permanent supportive housing.”
On Tuesday, the city announced additional investment in just that.
The city is partnering with The Pacific Cos., an Eagle-based real estate firm, to provide financing for 95 new apartments for people exiting homelessness at New Path 2.0, according to a news release. The development is an addition to New Path, a 40-unit apartment building at 2200 W. Fairview Ave. that provides permanent supportive housing.
The expansion would more than double the number of permanent apartments in Boise built to house chronically homeless people, including New Path’s 40 and the 26 units just for veterans at Valor Pointe on State Street in the Veterans Park neighborhood.
Like its predecessor, which opened in 2018, New Path 2.0 is intended to provide case management, health care, mental health counseling, substance use disorder treatment and more to residents. The goal is to empower people experiencing long-term homelessness to achieve success, in what Council President Colin Nash called a “proven model” of addressing the underlying causes of homelessness, according to the release.
New Path saved the city $6.7 million in its first four years, according to a study by the Idaho Policy Institute at Boise State University. When residents had housing, they were much less likely to need medical attention, experience mental health crises or get arrested, the Statesman previously reported.
The cost of services at New Path is just over $700,000 per year, Weeg said. Tenants pay 30% of their income, if they have any, for rent. The rest is covered by a federal housing voucher. A standard apartment includes a bedroom, a bathroom, a living room, a refrigerator, stoves and ovens, and several closets, the Statesman reported.
New Path takes a “housing first” approach — drawing on the idea that housing is the primary need for people experiencing homelessness, and that treatment for mental health issues or substance abuse can follow. These services are available — but not required — for residents.
The total cost of the New Path 2.0 project is $35 million, with the city providing $5.5 million, Maria Weeg, a spokesperson for the city, told the Idaho Statesman by email. The City Council was scheduled to allocate the funding at a meeting Tuesday night. The project is fully through the planning process and is expected to receive building permits soon, she said.
In May, McLean committed an additional $7.5 million in seed funding, to be matched by local businesses and philanthropists, to establish a fund to sustain “wraparound supportive services” at permanent supportive housing locations, including New Path, according to Tuesday’s release.
The investments are part of the city’s goal of adding 250 permanent supportive housing units by 2026.
As of January 2023, there were 687 people experiencing homelessness in Ada County, according to data from Our Path Home, a public-private partnership that aims to end homelessness in Ada County. This “point-in-time” data, based on a one-night count, reflected about a 10% increase in overall homelessness since 2022, and is likely an undercount, according to the organization. The area has seen a 12% decrease in overall homelessness since 2012, according to the organization.
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