City Rushes To Accommodate Rapidly Rising Homeless Population

[xchrom]

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2012/08/city_rushes_to.php


As the never-ending sweat of August settles into New York's membrane, there are those who are unfortunately not able to sit by an A/C all day and bask in the endless drivel of freon, forced to sleep outside of churches, federal buildings or any other institution that legally cannot kick them out.

Yes, we are talking about New York City's homeless population. And its ranks are skyrocketing: the homeless population of the Big Apple, in just one year, has risen 18 percent, putting the number somewhere just under 50,000 (it was around 37,000 last year). Also, that's only the number recorded at the shelters; the actuality could be much more unsettling. Regardless, there are fifty thousand people living on the streets of New York, unable to find food or shelter on their own.

This remarkable figure lies next to the City's 10% unemployment rate, a sad feat for New York and an increasingly thin line of hope for job-seekers. However, one must keep in mind that, by law, the City must offer some sort of shelter for the homeless population - the only restriction really comes on the time limits set for their stay. As temperatures dramatically rise, the summer spree for shelter has caused headaches for both the administration and the citizens, simply due to a lack of an answer to one resounding and flawed question of our society:

Where can all these homeless people sleep?

[lunatica]

1. How depressing

Just a taste of what it will be like if Romney wins. Only under him there will be no effort to house the homeless. They'll just build their gated communities and to hell with the rest of us.

[HiPointDem]

3. what? obama is president now. how can this be a taste of what it will be like when romney wins?

it's a taste of what it's like *now*.

there are already gated communities. is there suddenly going to be a stalin-style gated community building program the minute romney gets in?

[lunatica]

4. When one says this is just a taste

It's understood that things could and would get worse.

Obama has tried to get a jobs program passed and has been hobbled by the Republicans. If Romney wins do you think things will get better?

[HiPointDem]

5. I didn't say things would get better under romney. i simply was annoyed by your attempt to

twist the increased homelessness under obama -- in the fourth year of his first term -- as some kind of anti-romney campaign hype.

[lunatica]

6. Serious homelessness started under Reagan

When he closed down the mental health facilities in California as Governor. American jobs were and are being outsourced. Remember that? And there was a housing bubble which left many homeless. That happened before Obama But if you prefer to blame him go ahead.

[HiPointDem]

2. kr

[Le Taz Hot]

7. The area I live in is renown for summer heat.

On days that it's over 104 degrees F, the city does two things:

1) Opens up "cooling centers" which are usually recreation centers or other municipal buildings in which people can come in and stay the day.

2) The homeless can ride an air conditioned bus for free -- all day if they like.

I know this doesn't take care of the night but we don't have people dying of heat prostration/stroke during the day. A lot of elderly people take advantage of the cooling centers so they don't have to be faced with buying food or paying their electric bill in the summer.