Specialized Services
Coordinated Unsheltered Response
Our first priority, wherever possible, is connecting unsheltered individuals who want assistance with the local services that can actually help them. Many unsheltered individuals are dealing with circumstances beyond a lack of housing alone, including mental health needs, substance use, or lack of access to basic services, and a purely enforcement-driven response rarely resolves the underlying situation. It often just moves the person, and the problem, somewhere else.
That's why our on-the-ground engagement isn't just data collection. It's an opportunity to talk directly with unsheltered individuals on and around the property, understand what they need, and connect those who are willing with the shelter, mental health, and social service resources already available in that community. We work from the belief that people deserve to be treated with dignity, and that a response built on genuine engagement and available services is more effective, and more humane, than one built on enforcement alone.
Our Approach
Understanding the Contributing Factors
We start with an assessment of the property itself, identifying any physical conditions that may be attracting unsheltered individuals to loiter or gather there, such as unused structures, secluded areas, overhangs, or access points that provide shelter or privacy.
We then expand that analysis to the surrounding community. This includes both data collection and direct, on-the-ground engagement. Our team spends time on the property and in the surrounding neighborhood, engaging directly with unsheltered individuals to better understand the circumstances driving the activity. We also document the physical conditions in the surrounding area that may be contributing to unsheltered activity nearby.
Law Enforcement Perspective
We talk directly with local law enforcement to understand their perspective on unsheltered activity in the area. This includes reviewing local ordinances related to unsheltered individuals, but just as importantly, understanding whether those ordinances are actually being enforced. Enforcement can vary significantly based on the political priorities of the local government administration, as well as the staffing levels and current activity demands of the local police department with jurisdiction. Knowing the difference between what's on the books and what's actually enforced is essential to building a realistic plan.
Social Service Agency Perspective
We reach out to local social service agencies to understand what resources already exist in the community, what outreach is already happening, and where the gaps are. This ensures our recommendations connect individuals to real, available help rather than duplicating or working against existing efforts.
From Analysis to Action
Once this information is collected, we prepare a report detailing our findings and develop an action plan built on coordinated engagement across three fronts: local government, social services, and law enforcement. The plan reflects the realities we uncovered on the ground, not a generic template, and accounts for what's actually enforceable and what resources are actually available in that specific community.
Our Services
What We Do
Property Conditions Assessment
We identify physical conditions on the property that may be attracting unsheltered individuals to gather or shelter there.
Surrounding Community Analysis
We assess conditions in the surrounding neighborhood that may be contributing to unsheltered activity in the area, using both data collection and direct field engagement.
Direct Engagement
Our team engages directly with unsheltered individuals on the property and in the surrounding area as part of our data collection process, to understand the circumstances behind the activity firsthand and connect those seeking help with available services.
Law Enforcement Consultation
We meet with local law enforcement to understand their perspective, review applicable ordinances, and assess actual enforcement practices based on local government priorities and police department capacity.
Social Service Agency Coordination
We connect with local social service agencies to understand available resources and existing outreach efforts in the community.
Findings Report and Action Plan
We deliver a report of our findings along with a coordinated action plan that brings together local government, social services, and law enforcement, tailored to the specific realities of your property and community.
Balancing Compassion with the Realities of Operating a Commercial Property
Our approach starts with compassion, but compassion does not mean the absence of standards. A shopping center is a commercial property, and it has to remain safe, functional, and welcoming for tenants, customers, and employees. While we prioritize connecting willing individuals with services, unsheltered activity cannot be allowed to disrupt the operations of the property or violate local ordinances that apply to it. When engagement and available services aren't enough to resolve a situation, we help clients apply the appropriate ordinance enforcement and law enforcement resources, so the property's ability to operate is protected alongside our commitment to treating people with dignity.
Case Study
Louisville, Kentucky Metro Area
A shopping center in a higher-income suburb of the Louisville metro area began experiencing a sudden, unexpected increase in unsheltered activity on and around the property. The property owner's initial reaction was to hire additional security officers, at a projected cost of over $150,000 per year.
Before that contract was finalized, our team was brought in to conduct an assessment first.
What We Found
Through direct engagement with unsheltered individuals on the property, we identified the actual contributing factor: downtown Louisville had recently intensified efforts to move unsheltered individuals out of the downtown core, pushing many further out into surrounding suburbs, including this one. The sudden appearance of activity at this property was not an isolated local issue. It was a downstream effect of a policy decision made elsewhere in the metro area.
Our investigation also identified a specific, concrete cause on the ground: a vacant building attached to a former hotel near the property was unsecured and in unsafe condition, and unsheltered individuals had begun living inside it. A review of local ordinances confirmed that the building's condition was in violation of local code.
What We Did
Rather than defaulting to a straight security hire, our team engaged directly with the local municipality's police department and code enforcement division, and coordinated their efforts to enforce the applicable ordinance and remediate the nuisance property. Within a few weeks, the building was secured, and unsheltered activity at the shopping center diminished significantly.
We identified and addressed several other contributing factors as well. A retailer on-site was able to limit the range of its Wi-Fi signal, since individuals were congregating directly in front of the store to access it, and exterior electrical outlets that were being used were secured. Local social service agencies were also brought into the process to connect willing individuals with available resources.
A Longer-Term Solution
Beyond resolving the immediate issue, our team worked directly with the local municipality to help the property owner establish a direct, as-needed contracting relationship with the local police department for off-duty officer details. This gave the property the infrastructure to respond quickly to any future security issue, without committing to a long-term, full-time security contract before the actual need was understood.
The Result
The property owner avoided a $150,000-plus annual security contract that would have addressed the symptom without touching the actual cause. The real issue, a nuisance property and an upstream policy shift, was resolved through targeted government and law enforcement engagement, at a fraction of the cost, while also connecting people in need with real services.
Why It Matters
Why Local Government Engagement Is Essential
The Louisville case is a clear example of why our two core services, local government relations and public safety consulting, are so closely connected. A purely private-sector security response would never have identified the vacant hotel building as the actual source of the problem, and even if it had, a security company has no authority to compel a property owner to secure a building or bring it into code compliance.
Solving this issue required someone who understood how to engage code enforcement, work alongside the police department, and coordinate a municipal response, all while keeping the commercial property owner's interests at the center of the process. That is exactly the kind of engagement we specialize in, and it's a large part of why our diagnostic approach starts with understanding contributing factors rather than jumping straight to a security contract. Local government isn't a hurdle to work around. It's often the most effective lever available to actually solve the problem.
This case also illustrates the financial value of our approach. Understanding the actual issue and targeting the core contributing factors, rather than simply throwing money at security without a defined plan or target, has the potential to save clients tens of thousands of dollars. In this case, the property avoided a $150,000-plus annual security contract by spending a fraction of that to identify and resolve the real cause of the problem.
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Let's start with an honest assessment of your property and community.
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