Two of Mayor Greg Fischer's biggest allies on the Metro Council are fed up with the lack of progress in helping the homeless people sleeping on Louisville's cold streets and are working toward their own funding for an emergency solution.

Democrats Barbara Sexton Smith and Bill Hollander want to divert a majority of the city's roughly $600,000 budget surplus toward a temporary low-barrier shelter system that could last through the winter — a step homeless advocates have been pushing for months.

"No more meetings, no more talking, no more pointing the fingers, no more 'We'll never solve it,'" said Sexton Smith, who represents downtown. "... We need to be the urban laboratory and use this winter to create the model for an emergency temporary shelter operation."

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People who work to help the homeless say a low-barrier shelter would help to bridge the gap between the too-few overnight shelter beds that often come with requirements for entrance and the city's un-sheltered homeless sleeping on the streets.

A "low-barrier" shelter, according to advocates, would be a 24/7 facility that accepts people who want to bring in pets, partners or possessions. It would also accept people who are intoxicated or using drugs, as well as those with a mental illness or medical condition — essentially, people who might not otherwise get into most local shelters.

Such a shelter, they say, would be life-saving.

"We shouldn't have people sleeping out," said Christen "Tiny" Herron of outreach group Forgotten Louisville. "When we start seeing temperatures drop, and hear about people dying outside, it's because they can't get inside."

Fischer created a homeless task force nearly a year ago in the face of outrage from some residents over the city bulldozing several encampments, especially during the frigid winter. The group was tasked with reviewing city policies on dealing with homeless camps after the demolition of some put his "compassionate city" slogan into question.

"Every human being who finds themselves living on our streets is an individual with their own story and their own needs. And we want to treat them with dignity, respect and compassion, and do everything we can to help them get the resources they need," Fischer said last December.

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The mayor's office said the group would be finished with its recommendations by this summer. But while it's improved communication between city agencies, nonprofits and outreach workers, it hasn't made any concrete moves on creating a low-barrier shelter.

Amanda Mills, founder of outreach group South End Street Angels, said she's felt no urgency from the task force. It's frustrating for many on the front lines, Mills said, who have to say, "I don't know where to tell you to go" to homeless people forced by the city to relocate from camps.

Sexton Smith said it's time for the city to start doing what a society is supposed to and take care of its most vulnerable residents.

"Louisville is better than what we're showing right now," she said.

The plan is to earmark about $500,000 for the idea, though supporters are still determining how the low-barrier shelter would look, who would operate it, and which organization would manage the money.

Advocates and officials differ on the best format for the low-barrier shelter.

Some say several small shelters scattered throughout the city are ideal, while others have mentioned using large existing buildings and putting in partitions to provide shelter for many people in one central location.

They agree, though, on the urgent need.

Herron, the homeless advocate, drives late at night down streets outside Wayside Christian Mission, a local shelter, to do "pulse checks" on people she's most certain are barred from being inside of the facility, often due to substance abuse.

"Whether they're high or not, we check that they're OK," she said. "... If they knew they had a safe place to rest their head, and staff trained to check in on them. You're saving lives is what you're doing."

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When temperatures dip to 35 degrees or below, a "White Flag" night is declared, triggering shelters to open additional beds.

But even that doesn't provide shelter for everyone in the city.

"Even on a white flag night, there are people that won't go in, and people that can't go in, if they're on the banned list," said Eric Friedlander, co-chair of the mayor's task force. "And so, that low-barrier piece remains significant. That's why it's so 'now.'"

On a recent night, as temperatures slipped below 32 degrees, outreach group Fed With Faith fanned out across the city, car trunks packed with blankets, gloves, hand warmers, scarves and warm food to help people make it through the night.

Ken Hall, a longtime volunteer, traveled a route by heart: the couple in a wooded area, the camp by a set of train tracks, a few stops in the shadow of the Big Four Bridge. Then he zigzagged along downtown streets, eyes open for anyone who might need supplies.

"Outreach! Are you hungry?" he called through an open car window at each stop.

By the end of his hours-long night, his truck was empty.

Hall and Herron both say they've served well over 300 people sleeping outdoors in freezing temperatures so far this winter. Not all would necessarily enter a low-barrier shelter, but many would, advocates say.

"If you build it, they will come," Mills said. "I know without a doubt it will save lives."

Sexton Smith's plan is to send money toward an immediate, temporary fix to last the winter, while the "longer-term, more sustainable" model can be designed and permanent funding streams identified.

She's had conversations with the owners of a few possible locations for low-barrier shelters but hasn't had success, so she's prepared to ask the community to help identify a space or spaces for shelter.

If the money for the emergency, temporary shelter solution could be secured, she anticipates it would pay for shelter beds, security personnel, trained social workers, medical services and temporary storage lockers ("So they can go to a job interview without carrying everything they own to their interview or their job," she said).

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"This may never be able to be completely solved, however, you've got to put a stake in the ground and say, 'We're going to do this. We’re going to have some type of sheltering that’s available,'" Sexton Smith said.

Metro Council members working to set aside the money said they expect to craft an amendment to the existing ordinance authorizing year-end budget transfers. It could come up for discussion in budget committee as early as next week.

The administration previously suggested sending the estimated $600,000 surplus to the city's "rainy day fund," but Hollander and Sexton Smith disagree.

"This is a rainy day," said Hollander, who is a member of the mayor's task force and a strong advocate for the homeless.

"It's a tsunami," Sexton Smith added.

Mayoral spokeswoman Jean Porter said the mayor's office has been working for months to address issues related to homelessness in Louisville, but added that a new shelter is no easy task.

"Because of safety, security, staffing and liability challenges, establishing a new shelter is not a quick fix and would cost several times what we have available to build and operate," Porter said. "We do support earmarking the surplus funds to try new approaches to assist these individuals in crisis, including creation of facilities where homeless can store their personal possessions, which is sometimes a barrier to shelters."

How big is the problem?

The Coalition for the Homeless counted about 6,700 homeless people in Louisville from October 2016 to September 2017 during their annual census released this year.

That figure included 5,900 individuals classified as sheltered homeless, or those who stayed in emergency or transitional shelters. An additional 774 people said they were living only in the streets or in camps, a 4 percent increase from the previous census.

Some outreach workers say the increase this year is significantly larger than that, based on the populations they serve on weekly basis. Friedlander said he'd heard from outreach folks that there's been a 20 to 30 percent increase over the previous year.

But it's difficult to get a full, accurate picture of the homeless population, Friedlander and others say.

The "point in time" count sends volunteers across the city, but takes place in January when those sleeping on the street dips significantly and can fail to take into account people living in abandoned houses or sheds unbeknownst to counters.

Regardless, there's a gap between the people looking for shelter and the amount of space in city shelters.

This year, the coalition counted roughly 470 year-round emergency shelter beds, with 114 overflow spots that opened on Operation White Flag nights. At the time of the January 2018 "point-in-time" count, there were 555 emergency shelter beds.

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Natalie Harris, executive director of the coalition, said there are consistently 30 to 70 families on a waiting list for shelter, though numbers fluctuate depending on the time of year. On average, she said, six new families move into shelters each month.

The coalition doesn't track waiting lists for single people at individual shelters, but Harris said the wait depends on who you are.

If a single man calls back on a consistent basis, he can get a bed within a few days. A single woman, though, faces more of a challenge because there are fewer beds.

The "banned" list for shelters also fluctuate, Harris said, estimating that there's typically 20 to 30 on the list at any given time. People can be banned for violence, stealing, causing a disruption or coming in inebriated, among other things.

How can you help?

Sexton Smith is working with the Coalition for the Homeless, which includes 30 member agencies, many of which accept volunteers. For more information on volunteer opportunities, visit louhomeless.org/how-you-can-help/volunteer.

For more information on donating to the coalition or its member agencies, visit louhomeless.org/how-you-can-help.

Street outreach groups, which Friedlander called the "saints of the city," are "out there on the front lines really saving lives," he said. Some street outreach groups that accept donations and volunteers:

The Forgotten Louisville: The Forgotten Louisville (Volunteer Group) on Facebook. The group accepts donations through PayPal at forgottenlouisvilleoutreach@gmail.com.

South End Street Angels: Contact founder Amanda Mills at southendstreetangels502@gmail.com.

Fed With Faith: Follow the group's Facebook page, Fed With Faith at facebook.com/fedwithfaith, for volunteer opportunities. Information on donations can be found at fedwithfaith.org/donate.

Darcy Costello: 502-582-4834; dcostello@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @dctello. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/darcyc.