Police at homeless encampment in OKC not related to Governor Stitt’s ‘Operation Safe’

A sighting of police clearing a homeless encampment along 23rd Street near the Oklahoma State Capitol on Friday is not part of Governor Stitt’s recently launched ‘Operation Safe.’ 

The Governor posted a video to his Facebook page on Friday depicting the Oklahoma City Police Department’s Homeless Outreach Team. 

“Good on Mayor David Holt for taking inspiration from Operation SAFE,” he wrote in the post. 

Stitt’s office said there are no plans to announce Operation Safe in Oklahoma City at this time. 

However, the Oklahoma City Police Department told News 9 that the activity along 23rd Street was a regular duty of its Homeless Outreach officers and not spurred by the governor’s directive. 

Specifically, the department said the Oklahoma Department of Transportation requested its presence along 23rd Street. 

As part of Operation Safe, ODOT and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol are working together to remove homeless encampments from state-owned property and roads in Tulsa. 

ODOT relies on law enforcement to remove encampments from the roadways and properties it manages. When asked if the agency has different working relationships with the Oklahoma City Police and Tulsa Police, a spokesperson for ODOT declined to provide an answer. 

News 9 contacted Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt regarding the Governor’s post, but he declined to comment. 

As part of Operation Safe, people experiencing homelessness will either be taken to housing or treatment facilities. If they refuse, the Governor’s office said the people would instead be arrested. 

But as of Friday afternoon, no arrests had been made. 

“Some of the people we’ve spoken with have lived on state property for more than 10 years, making relocation especially difficult,” OHP said, in part, in a statement on Facebook. “We recognize these challenges and are working with nonprofit organizations to connect individuals with the support and resources they need.” 

News 9 reached out to each member of the Oklahoma City Council to seek their perspective about what differentiates the city’s homelessness strategy from Tulsa's. 

Councilman Bradley Carter responded on Friday night, declining to provide a comment. 

"Houston teaches us the best way to reduce homelessness is to fund and train 'street outreach teams' with intake workers, case managers, and mental health providers, then direct those teams to parts of town experiencing homelessness, and use those professionals to connect people experiencing homelessness to 'housing' and stabilizing community support services," Councilor James Cooper told News 9, in part, in a statement provided over the weekend.

Cooper also credited the Key to Home program and local funding for homelessness services as driving forces behind the city's response.