820 people rehoused: Safe Move Tulsa eyes final stretch toward taking 1,300 people off the streets

Nearly a year since launching, Safe Move Tulsa has rehoused 820 people — a number that includes 170 since September. But it’s still short of its goal to provide housing to 1,300 people by the end of 2026. 

City leaders and advocates to end street sleeping celebrated the $11 million initiative’s latest milestone Wednesday at Whittier Square, near where 13 encampments have been decommissioned along the I-244 and Admiral corridor. Along with its rehousing efforts, Safe Move has closed 25 encampments. 

“There’s been a heavy reduction in people who are camping under trees. There was an encampment across from Perez Video that now those folks have been housed,” Kasey Rhone, executive director of Kendall Whittier Main Street, said.

During a Wednesday Urban and Economic Development meeting, councilors heard updates from Housing Solutions CEO Mark Smith on Safe Move’s current metrics as well as the next phase of the coalition’s plan to reach its 1,300-person goal. 

Of the 820 people who have been rehoused: 

• 71 people were from streets/downtown
• 211 people from encampments 
• 538 people from shelters

“We have a lot of work to do to hit 1,300. I think if you’ll see over the last year, we’ve really been building momentum,” said Smith, who took over the city’s lead homelessness organization in 2024. “We have a lot of work to do, but that’s our goal.”

Mayor Monroe Nichols said 94% of the people who have been housed from decommissioned encampments have remained housed over this last year.

Its rapid exit strategy program, which assists with security deposits, transportation or limited financial assistance for people on the brink of chronic homelessness, has been credited with the steady pace. 

But officials acknowledged street sleeping won’t end even if Safe Move hits its goal. 

Housing Solution’s 2026 Point in Time Count survey found 1,443 people were experiencing homelessness in January compared to 1,449 last year. It marked the first time in five years Tulsa’s count did not increase.

The federally-required count tracks how many people experienced homelessness on a specific night, Smith said, while on average 3,000 people fall into homelessness in Tulsa per year. 

Safe Move’s numeric goals going into 2027 will depend on the amount of resources available, but Smith said rehousing 2,000 people would put them on a good track. 

“When we’re doing this work, we have to think about the person who has a housing crisis and is going to enter shelter, the person who loses their home, a person who has experienced domestic violence, and how can we help those people get out of homelessness faster,” he said. 

Safe Move is part of Nichols’ larger plan to achieve functional zero homelessness by 2030. In December, the city will officially open a new $16 million low barrier shelter, The Harbor, that will include 180 beds. 

Ismael Lele is a Report for America corps member and writes about business in Tulsa for The Oklahoma Eagle. Your donation to match our Report for America grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting this link.

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