"It's more than just the dinners": Dispute over homeless meal program in Malibu
A church in one of Southern California's wealthiest communities says it has stopped serving dinners to the homeless, under pressure from the city. Organizers of the weekly meal program say Malibu officials voiced concerns after receiving public safety complaints.
The meals are served on the United Methodist Church campus which is also home to a nursery school and sits next to a middle school and high school, reports CBS News correspondent Jamie Yuccas. City officials are concerned about the dozens of homeless people that go there, including many from outside communities.
For years, volunteers at the United Methodist have pulled out food carts and set tables to serve as many as a hundred meals each week to the homeless, like Micah Johnson.
"They keep me accountable and the church was really helpful in keeping my spirits up," Johnson said.
Reggie Goco's organization ran the program until earlier this month. He says the city asked him to stop.
"They are trying to highly encourage us to use the resources they already have," Goco said.
Malibu's mayor says the city never forced the program to end, but he does have serious concerns that homeless people from around L.A. County are taking the bus to Malibu for the free meals.
"And what comes with that, with some of these people, is drug use, is assault," said Mayor Skylar Peak.
The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department says homeless-related service calls – including those reporting crimes -- have more than tripled in the Malibu area from 2011 to 2016.
"Truth be told, I've never met any of these people that are causing these problems," Goco said.
But the mayor insists it's not simply because they don't want the homeless around.
"We're doing a better job of getting them resources and we're going to continue to do that. We're going to continue to get better at it," Peak said.
City officials say they already work with two "full-time outreach workers" that connect the homeless with programs including health services, shelter, and substance abuse counseling. But they aren't currently handing out meals and Goco says his dinners provide a vital connection that the city can't duplicate.
"To us, it's more than just the dinners," Goco said. "It's not really the food. It's the relationship, it's the mentorship, that's where you get people lit up from within and they actually go out on their own."
The city says one possible solution is providing boxed lunches to the homeless at other locations around town. City and community leaders are set to meet again Monday to discuss the church's meal program.
