Officials in Atlantic City, New Jersey, are moving forward with plans to ban homeless camping in public spaces.New York Post report.
Last month, the city established the Boardwalk Improvement Group to lead a cleanup effort to move homeless people living under the Boardwalk into shelter spaces. City crews have been deployed to the Boardwalk to refer hundreds of homeless people to shelters and advocacy groups.
“We’re not going to ignore this issue.”
As part of their ongoing efforts, authorities recently announced plans to introduce a law banning sleeping in public.
The campaign to address the crisis was launched by Mayor Marty Small (D) in response to a recent Supreme Court ruling that said local governments have the power to restrict individuals from sleeping in public, noting that such laws do not constitute “cruel and unusual punishment.”
Fences will be erected to stop people from trying to sleep under the boardwalk, and police officers will also be deployed to patrol the area.
“We’re not going to ignore the homeless problem in our city that’s been overlooked for far too long,” Mayor Small told The Washington Post. “We can’t be a world-class tourist destination if we don’t find ways to help the people who live in our city.”
Small said other municipalities also send their homeless people to Atlantic City. Said It’s unclear who is sending individuals into the city.
“It’s unfortunate, but we’ll deal with it,” he told the Post.
Jarrod Barnes, director of Atlantic City’s Health and Human Services department, said he hopes the new law will encourage homeless people to accept help, as many have previously refused shelter.
“Many of the people we evict believe that because they’ve been on the streets their whole life, it’s OK for them to stay on the streets, but that’s not true,” Burns explained.
“Nobody deserves to live on the streets,” he continued. “Most of the people who live on the streets are down on their luck or have substance abuse problems.”
The homeless encampment under the boardwalk has posed a fire hazard in the past, including a fire in April that spread to a nearby store and killed a 67-year-old man.
“We had someone who was able to install circuits that would provide power to the multi-bedroom apartments that were built under the boardwalk,” Burns said.
Small explained that a man was waiting in line at the casino’s beer counter to get a free drink.
At a July press conference, Small noted that the city’s homelessness problem didn’t emerge overnight and will take time to solve.
“As mayor of the great city of Atlantic City, it’s my job to give them the tools they need to succeed, and we’re doing that in a big way,” Small said.
California Governor GavinNewsom (Democrat) recently said, Governor Newsom has issued executive orders to crack down on the state’s epidemic of homelessness, and he said the Supreme Court decision prompted him to enact a law that would require local governments to clear out homeless encampments. Governor Newsom has said for decades that solving homelessness in California is one of his top priorities.
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