Homeless People (Burke, Fairfax: stores, suburban, Walmart)

[Fundman]

The beggars have always been here. You probably just didn't notice them before. Once you become aware to this fact of life, you start to see these people everywhere. There is a beggar that hangs out in the parking lot near the Dicks and Shoppers Food on Prince William Parkway. I'm sure he just blends into the wood work for most people, but since I am on to him, I notice him every time I go shopping.

[FindingZen]

Originally Posted by Gilgamesh8

Will the silver line bring the homeless to Tysons?

The fear in many metros of expanded rail service (Atlanta's MARTA comes to mind, immediately) is that the poor/homeless will come to the suburban areas and wreak havoc.

Regarding this area, I don't believe the truly homeless will be able to afford Metrorail fares. On the other hand, it's conceivable that a professional panhandler might hop on the train to Tysons and hang out for several hours before returning home with their $100 in coins and bills.

[FindingZen]

Originally Posted by govmoneynvegas

everyone in NOVA has a job, this thread is stupid

Ummm...not quite "everyone" has a job here. I can see how you might feel that way, especially if you do indeed live in Las Vegas, NV. However, here it is more a case of, say, 20 professional retail clerks vying for the same Wal-Mart greeter job than perhaps 200 people of various "collars" vying for that same gig.

[GustavoFring]

Originally Posted by Tone509

The fear in many metros of expanded rail service (Atlanta's MARTA comes to mind, immediately) is that the poor/homeless will come to the suburban areas and wreak havoc.

Regarding this area, I don't believe the truly homeless will be able to afford Metrorail fares. On the other hand, it's conceivable that a professional panhandler might hop on the train to Tysons and hang out for several hours before returning home with their $100 in coins and bills.

People opposed to Metro stations near them always say that it will bring bad elements to their area, however this result seems to be a mixed bag. Just from some examples we have locally in NoVa:

Orange Line through Arlington and into Vienna: For the most part, improved Arlington considerably. Perhaps the only caveat to this would be considered the Ballston stop. The Ballston mall and surrounding area has experienced more problems in recent years, but is this because of the Metro? I have no idea, but I'd like to hear some opinions

Blue Line to Springfield: The downfall of the Springfield Mall area has often been blamed on metro access, but is this true? I'm not familiar with the area and would like to hear some opinions from those that are

Yellow/Blue to Pentagon City, Crystal City, Old Town & Huntington.

Pentagon City mall seems to be doing fine, Crystal city is mostly a business stop and Old Town seems OK. There are some obvious scam artists that hang out by the King Street metro, but that seems to be it. Has Huntington improved since the Metro arrived, or gotten worse? It seems to be on the upswing now.

[HokieFan]

Originally Posted by govmoneynvegas

everyone in NOVA has a job, this thread is stupid

Wrong.

[Boomshakalaka!]

There are a lot more Gypsies in the area, I have noticed. They are the ones that tend to not speak english (or pretend not to) and are typically women with children (who are drugged to look "sick" or "slow") and hand out cards saying they need help for them and their kid for pity.

In their culture, the men don't work and the women and children go out and beg. This happens a lot in Europe and is slowly spreading here...

Child beggars as young as four making £100,000 a year each for gypsy gangs | Mail Online

A traveler's guide to spotting and foiling gypsy pickpockets in Europe


I typically hand out $5-10 mcdonalds gift cards, walmart gift cards, 711 gift cards, etc to those who will truly use them- NO CASH.

[yolli71]

I don't see panhandlers all that often in NoVA, but I see them all the time where I work in MoCo.

[Plokivos]

I took a homeless guy out for some dinner and drinks. Interesting company.

[gingerbreadgirl]

[quote=SweetAsRain;26851592]I've been approached a couple of times in Fairfax County in the Toys R Us parking lot in Fair Oaks, (both times by women), and in PW County in businesses on Liberia Ave. Once a man approached me with a gas can saying he needed money for gas. The whole gas thing was a new one to me.

The gas can man approached me in the Greenbriar Shopping Center. It was a new one for me and I gave him a couple of bucks....since I hadnt seen this before, I kind of believed him. Saw him there a few days later and finally caught on that I wasted my money. I'm sure we would be shocked to know the amount of money these panhandlers make off kind hearted people.

[Bigfoot424]

[quote=gingerbreadgirl;30035432]

Originally Posted by SweetAsRain

I've been approached a couple of times in Fairfax County in the Toys R Us parking lot in Fair Oaks, (both times by women), and in PW County in businesses on Liberia Ave. Once a man approached me with a gas can saying he needed money for gas. The whole gas thing was a new one to me.

The gas can man approached me in the Greenbriar Shopping Center. It was a new one for me and I gave him a couple of bucks....since I hadnt seen this before, I kind of believed him. Saw him there a few days later and finally caught on that I wasted my money. I'm sure we would be shocked to know the amount of money these panhandlers make off kind hearted people.

I've been approached a few times at both Wal Mart and Harris Teeter off Liberia. One guy was about 70 or so and said he had his kid in the car in the parking lot and they were out of gas and needed a few dollars. When I said "let's go see your kid to make sure he's okay" he of course said never mind. I told him, and the others, I would call the police for them and they would help them. They tend to beat a hasty retreat with that.