HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-29-25 Public Comment - R. Elkins - Bozeman Right to CounselFrom:Ryan Elkins To:Bozeman Public Comment Subject:[EXTERNAL]Bozeman Right to Counsel Date:Tuesday, April 22, 2025 2:57:25 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Dear City Commission, I am unhoused in Bozeman. I’ve been unhoused for about 5 years. I got into an accident, got hurt, and have been limited in what work I can do since then. I struggle with mental health and chronic pain, and every day I fight to survive living without a home. Every day it’s hard to survive. To get into housing, there is a mountain of barriers to overcome to be able to have a stable place to live. Because I am disabled, I have limited income. There are really limited options for what housing I can get into. I would only be able to work 20 hours if I could get a job that would be accessible to me, and I have limits in what money I can save up. I need to be in a stable home to recover, but the barriers to that keep me in survival mode. I am still a human being, who can do things, take care of myself, and contribute to the world. I feel as if because I am unable to get into housing, it feels as if I’m pushed to the outskirts of our society. It’s an impossible problem. I like to create music, and I want to provide for my community and contribute. I feel trapped in this cycle of survival. I want to live in a world where people have their basic needs met and can contribute to the community around them. I would like to see a world that’s a lot more connected. There are so few services for food, health, and schooling, and it’s all based off of money. There are blockages keeping us from being more connected. Our housing system feels backwards. Because tenants can barely afford to stay in housing, let alone afford to resist if landlords are breaking the lease or attempting to illegally evict them, landlords have unchecked power to keep tenants in a cycle of paying whatever is asked to make sure they stay in housing, or get into housing. Having representation for tenants facing eviction would mean that I could have more of an opportunity to get into housing and stay in housing. Ryan Elkins Unhoused in Bozeman