Greensboro's troubled nonprofit help center for the homeless has creaked and buckled under the weight of one problem on top of another ... and then another ... in recent months.

Now bad has come to worse.

A violent incident at the Interactive Resource Center has claimed a life. An unhoused man who was an IRC client was fatally shot in the nonprofit's parking lot early Wednesday morning.

In an emailed statement, IRC Executive Director Kristina Singleton said the incident stemmed from "what we believe was an altercation between individuals who knew each other."

"The victim was a guest of the guest of the IRC," she said. "The other was not."

The IRC has been plagued this year by assaults, drug-related crimes, sex offenses and thefts, generating more than 1,600 police calls. With those mounting problems has come mounting pressure from the city of Greensboro, which provides the lion's share of funding for the agency.

In response, the IRC's management has added a round-the-clock unarmed security guard, among other measures. But city leaders question whether that's enough. And friction between Singleton and the City Council has only grown.

"I would say the relationship between the city and the IRC is strained," City Councilman Zack Matheny, a frequent critic of the IRC's management, told the News & Record this week in a vast understatement.

How this latest development will affect an already-frayed relationship remains to be seen. But it's hard not to fear the worst.

Here's where things stand: The IRC already had planned to scale back from 24/7 service to its original concept as a day room, effective at the end of this week. Meanwhile, city funding for the nonprofit going forward is uncertain. And, as usual, both parties are blaming each other for this tragic mess. That's hardly a recipe for progress.

The truth is both the city and the IRC share responsibility. It's not the IRC's fault that more people are using its services, for instance, 1,000 in April, nearly double the traffic the IRC experienced during the same period in 2023. But it also is the IRC's job to make the best of that situation.

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That said, it bears repeating: The IRC's problems are Greensboro's problems, including drug use, poverty and mental illness, all of which are especially prevalent among unhoused persons.

So, it's unfair for City Council members to wag their fingers at the IRC without also looking in the mirror. Would they blame any other agency, business or neighborhood for a spike in crime there?

By its nature the IRC attracts people with problems. That doesn't absolve the IRC of taking some steps it may not ideally prefer.

It's all well and good to preach the ideal of "best practices" and being a "low barrier" organization that appears welcoming and inclusive rather than suspicious and intimidating to clients.

But no place is welcoming if it's not safe. One woman told the News & Record that she prefers spending the night in a parking deck to the IRC.

This can't go on.

Nightclubs, schools, courtrooms and even City Council meetings have metal detectors and armed security. Why shouldn't the IRC?

Singleton, who says she's amenable to metal detectors but opposes armed guards, needs to reconsider.

As for future funding for the IRC, it's not a given. The IRC has retreated from its expansion plans because it realizes that's an overreach.

But the city manager says its funding is contingent on the 24/7 model and becomes void if the IRC cuts its hours. If that's so, the city and IRC should settle on a revised contract.

Finally, the uneasiest question: Does the IRC have the right leadership?

Singleton's passion for a clearly grueling, thankless, high-stress job is obvious. She also appears to have the support of the IRC board. But she can't manage the nonprofit with her heart alone. In the end, the truest measure of any leader is results.

Unfortunately, so far we're not seeing enough of them.

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