Tim Boyd
County Commissioner Tim Boyd said the city of Chattanooga should immediately halt its plan to house some of its homeless in a hotel in East Ridge.
Commissioner Boyd said city officials should have advised East Ridge officials about the plan to house some 100 homeless from Chattanooga "tent cities" at the Budgetel at Exit 1 on I-75.
City officials said the Budgetel had the best proposal for housing the homeless. Officials said FEMA will cover the costs 100 percent for at least the next 90 days.
Commissioner Boyd said in a letter to East Ridge Mayor Brian Williams:
"It has come to my attention that the city of Chattanooga has unilaterally decided to provide services for a portion of the homeless population of Chattanooga within the boundaries of East Ridge without mutual consent from the city of East Ridge.
"This gives me great concern that the city of Chattanooga mayor and council members feel they can make decisions concerning other municipalities within Hamilton County without any consideration of the impacts any city of Chattanooga services may have on the municipality where the proposed services are actually located and/or provided.
"it is also my understanding that the city of Chattanooga has been housing a small number of homeless at an extended stay hotel located within East Ridge since last fall. This alone may be in direct violation of the operating permit issued to the hotel owners where the homeless are residing as per East Ridge ordinances a hotel operator cannot provide housing for more than 90 consecutive days to any individual residing at the hotel.
"Hamilton County District 8 encompasses all of East Ridge and a large portion of Chattanooga and I have been elected to represent the citizens of District 8. I am very concerned that there is no interlocal agreement between the city of Chattanooga and the city of East Ridge concerning the housing of homeless persons within the city of East Ridge. As such both municipalities may be in violation of their respective city charter according to the handbook for interlocal agreements and contracts issued by the Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations a municipal corporation's powers generally are deemed to end at the municipal boundaries without an interlocal agreement.
"I suggest a meeting between the city of Chattanooga mayor's staff and the city of East Ridge mayor's staff be convened as soon as possible to discuss this issue and any actions taken by the city of Chattanooga to transfer homeless to the city of East Ridge be stopped immediately. All parties involved with the decision to house homeless in a hotel within East Ridge should meet to consider all the issues impacted by this proposal.
"A mutually agreeable interlocal agreement should be drafted and approved by the city councils of Chattanooga and East Ridge and signed by both mayors before any further actions be taken to relocate homeless from Chattanooga to East Ridge.
"if I can be of any assistance in helping develop a mutually agreeable solution to this issue please do not hesitate to contact me."