"SoNo" held back by shelter? (Atlanta, Decatur: apartments, rent)

[midtown mile girl]

They walk up the streets past 15th. I have been panhandled several times. I always tell them that I'm unemployed and they leave me alone. But with more people moving into the area, especially single women, I can see that the problem really needs to be addressed more. A lot of these guys could be on edge, and that creates an unsafe situation. Several years ago a woman walking in broad daylight, had her head bashed in on the pavement by a homeless guy. Midtown ponce alliance had been pushing law enforcement to do something about this guy even before it happened. Not every homeless guy is a "warm fuzzy" wanting legit help.

[jsimms3]

Well and to distinguish between "homeless" and vagrant (there's a lot of the former in this economy especially, including children and women). The vagrants downtown are certainly a problem. I knew an APD sheriff who lived in Post Parkside, and at 7:00 a.m. he was walking to the gym in his building when he encountered a vagrant who was trying to gain entrance. He politely talked the vagrant away only to turn around to the vagrant coming at him with a 2x4. He drew his gun, but had he not been armed he would have been in for some trouble, and this is in a nice apartment complex at 10th and Piedmont. Something does need to be done.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by KevK

Generally they don't bother people or hang out on Peachtree. They usually hang out on the side street that runs along side of the building itself.

We've been to the Shakespeare Tavern a couple of times, and I don't remember being hassled at all. Not enough sample trips to work from, perhaps.

[imb951]

Originally Posted by arjay57

I have never understood why a downtown location is the best place for the homeless. Seems to me it would be better to locate homeless support services where you've got some greenery and open space instead of asphalt, concrete and tall buildings.

If you move to a more suburban location, at least you could set up barracks or some similar kind of shelter where people have breathing and walking around room. It shouldn’t be a piece of junk and it would probably be better than what they’re living in now. Given how many soldiers, contractors and support personnel we’ve been housing overseas this past decade, I wouldn't be surprised if there's some new technology that could be put to use to create satisfactory housing.

I will probably get shouted down for saying this, but Atlanta could learn some important lessons from its past. In the late 1800s and the first half of the 1900s the city maintained its poor folk in almshouses. Initially they were at Peachtree and Piedmont, then they moved north toward Old Ivy, and eventually over to Chastain. The buildings are still there today and are used as art centers and as part of a private school. They were run for many years by the great Dr. R. L. Hope, and they were widely admired for providing a decent quality of life and giving people some actual meaning as well. The residents worked the grounds and the poorhouses were close to self-sustaining. They had medical care and schooling, and families could stay together. Anybody who hasn't read "The Poor Houses," which traces the history of the way Atlanta looked after its less fortunate citizens in days gone by, definitely needs to take a look. The way folks are warehoused these days and dumped out into asphalt parking lots and city streets is demeaning and dehumanizing. It's a dead-end for them and for society.

[mike7586]

The shelter needs to be closed down, period. The city should consider moving the homeless to a more remote location where there are less distractions and they can get their lives in order. The city also needs to enact a stricter panhandling law and vagrants need to be arrested. There's a difference between sitting on the street with a cup and aggressively asking for money. I don't understand why the city ignores the aggressive panhandling issue. I think Mayor Reed is doing a decent job so far but he said he would acknowledge this issue and I yet to see him do anything about it.

[koko339]

via the website of the Midtown Ponce Security Alliance (which, btw has some fascinating info):
Peachtree Pine near its end?

November 23, 2010 · Posted in Bulletins, Eye on Midtown

The new owner of Peachtree Pine shelter building is expecting a resolution to all legal issues and in obtaining unfettered access to the building before the end of this year. According to a plan presented last week, the current residents of the shelter will be transitioned out of Peachtree Pine and into a variety of existing structured services across the city. This new program, Uplift Atlanta, is a consortium of non-profits, corporate sponsorships, political support, faith-based institutions, United Way, Union Mission, Salvation Army, medical facilities, community volunteers, training and job resources throughout the City of Atlanta all working together to make this transition possible.
When the building is finally empty, it will be totally renovated into a multi-purpose building to be used for non-profit purposes. There will be office space built to rent to non-profit groups, a cafe (operated partly as a job training opportunity) located along the Peachtree Street side and space provided for 45 emergency or overflow beds for homeless. The emergency housing will be limited to a maximum of 45 days as a stop gap which includes assessment for needed services. Profits will be directed towards scholarships for homeless women with children.
Hopefully, we can soon look forward to the 500 + men, who leave there each day and come into the neighborhoods, to instead be in transitional or supportive housing and on their way to becoming productive citizens. It has been a long hard road...

Peachtree Pine near its end? : Midtown Ponce Security Alliance

[mike7586]

So it's basically going to become another homeless shelter?

[koko339]

That's what it sounds like. At least it seems that the program they're putting in place will be 100x better than the current one. I'm sure nearby residents were hoping it wouldn't be another shelter.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by arjay57

I have never understood why a downtown location is the best place for the homeless. Seems to me it would be better to locate homeless support services where you've got some greenery and open space instead of asphalt, concrete and tall buildings.

If you move to a more suburban location, at least you could set up barracks or some similar kind of shelter where people have breathing and walking around room. It shouldn’t be a piece of junk and it would probably be better than what they’re living in now. Given how many soldiers, contractors and support personnel we’ve been housing overseas this past decade, I wouldn't be surprised if there's some new technology that could be put to use to create satisfactory housing.

I will probably get shouted down for saying this, but Atlanta could learn some important lessons from its past. In the late 1800s and the first half of the 1900s the city maintained its poor folk in almshouses. Initially they were at Peachtree and Piedmont, then they moved north toward Old Ivy, and eventually over to Chastain. The buildings are still there today and are used as art centers and as part of a private school. They were run for many years by the great Dr. R. L. Hope, and they were widely admired for providing a decent quality of life and giving people some actual meaning as well. The residents worked the grounds and the poorhouses were close to self-sustaining. They had medical care and schooling, and families could stay together. Anybody who hasn't read "The Poor Houses," which traces the history of the way Atlanta looked after its less fortunate citizens in days gone by, definitely needs to take a look. The way folks are warehoused these days and dumped out into asphalt parking lots and city streets is demeaning and dehumanizing. It's a dead-end for them and for society.

Arjay, I'd swear you've been listening to Neal Boortz, who advocates 'Economic Refugee Camps'. The idea actually makes sense.

Somebody's gotta say it - Google Books

[jsimms3]

LovinDecatur: I love that book! He's actually pretty hysterical to read and I love his comments about the "public art" in the newer federal courthouse that ended up in the dumpster because the workers thought it was trash