MINNEAPOLIS — The Minneapolis City Council considered a pause on forcibly removing unhoused encampments on Thursday, but the measure failed in a vote after the city attorney said it wasn’t within the council’s authority.
Discussion of the measure lasted for over an hour, with council members going back and forth and at some points becoming heated with members of the gallery.
Ultimately, the Minneapolis city attorney determined that the directive to put a pause on forced removals and clearing encampments went above what the council is able to do, saying that would be under executive authority.
The measure failed 5-8 in a vote.
Council member Aisha Chughtai, who introduced the directive, argued that wasn’t the case, while council member LaTrisha Vetaw said bringing this forward was more for show.
“This could have come through so many different committees. That is the way things are done, it’s a process,” Vetaw said. “I don’t like how some people want process and data for certain things, but not everything. This is an opportunity for us to get it right. This is not the time to perform, to play up to a group of people who come to threaten you and make you feel bad.”
The measure would have paused forced removals until spring.
The council did approve an analysis of cost and health risks connected to forced removals.
Source: CBS Minnesota
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