Months after the city shut down tent encampments at Mass and Cass, community members called for an immediate plan to address the way the homelessness and drug use crisis has been pushed out into the surrounding neighborhoods.

“The message is that the Mass and Cass Atkinson Street effort, designed to address the public safety challenges that existed with the tents, was successful,” said South End Forum Chair Stephen Fox, speaking of the city ordinance to ban tents last fall. “But unfortunately, what has happened is that the entire Atkinson Street environment has diffused, especially into the South End, and we need to figure out what it is that we need to do in order to address it.”

A large group of stakeholders, including impacted “residents, businesses, city officials, government electeds, police, EMTs” and more, gathered over Zoom for the June meeting of the South End Forum’s working group on issues stemming from the crisis at Mass and Cass on Tuesday afternoon.

A group of South End residents presented slides on issues in their neighborhood, emphasizing the immediate impact on safety, home sales, business and other aspects within their community. The residents spoke of times they had called the police or had negative interactions with homeless people they assumed to have been pushed out of the Mass and Cass area.

Several pulled up photos to show evidence of “discarded needles, drug paraphernalia, nudity and sometimes sex acts, and excessive trash everywhere,” among other complaints.

“This definitely has an impact on the residents, businesses,” said South End resident Bob Barney, speaking to activity in the Southwest Corridor Park. “And we’re going to continue to monitor it. We’re going to continue to report on it. We know everybody wants to help the situation, but we’re really kind of looking for different short-term solutions to help people get into services, help people get out of the park and into a better place.”

As the weather has gotten warmer in the last several weeks the crowding around Mass and Cass and the surrounding communities has visibly increased, said Executive Director of the Boston Public Health Commission Bisola Ojikutu, noting “we’re really at a crisis point.”

Ojikutu cited state data on overall drug overdose mortality and opioid mortality, noting that while state deaths are fell about 10%, Boston opioid deaths increased 12% and overall overdose deaths also increased from 2022 to 2023.

The city is in need of “new solutions,” Ojikutu said, and her office is involved in meetings on a “daily basis.” Ongoing work includes public health efforts, efforts to expand shelter capacity and several outreach teams working in the area, she listed.

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From the City Council side, Councilor Ed Flynn said, the city can look at the “nuts and bolts” approach of expanding city services in the impacted areas and supporting police presence.

Other speakers called for continued conversations and meetings on immediate solutions, acknowledging the longer-term efforts — like the Long Island Bridge treatment center project — but pushing for more urgent action.

“It’s time for phase two, and we need to work together to figure out what that plan is,” said state Rep. John Moran.