Inquirer editorial: Will reaching out to city's homeless be enough?
Some of Center City's homeless people have lost even the patches of concrete and grass where they lived in recent years. They've been displaced by the continuing overhaul of LOVE Park, construction around the Free Library, and the dramatic renovation of Dilworth Park, which added a water feature, a café, and plenty of security.
Some of Center City's homeless people have lost even the patches of concrete and grass where they lived in recent years. They've been displaced by the continuing overhaul of LOVE Park, construction around the Free Library, and the dramatic renovation of Dilworth Park, which added a water feature, a café, and plenty of security.
Some of the displaced have shown up on nearby streets where residents, workers, and tourists aren't used to seeing them. Complaints have followed. The displaced people, combined with an influx of drug addicts from surrounding communities, have upset a balance of sorts on the city's streets.
Although Philadelphia is the poorest of the nation's 10 largest cities, it also has the smallest homeless population among them, about 700. That is partly because of a deal then-City Council President John Street, on the verge of a crackdown, struck with advocates. The city agreed to facilitate treatment for addiction and mental illness, the most common afflictions among the 300 or so homeless people living in Center City, for those who wanted it.
But those efforts tapered over time, and the streets have become more crowded and edgy. Acknowledging what he called the "basic survival needs" of homeless people as well as the "valid concerns" of Center City business owners and others who live and work in the area, Mayor Kenney stepped up the city's homeless outreach last week.
The city is deploying teams of trained workers to meet with homeless people three times a day in places where panhandling and complaints are most concentrated. They include the vicinities of Rittenhouse Square, the Avenue of the Arts, the Pennsylvania Convention Center, and Independence Mall.
The workers, clad in bright orange, will help with emergency housing and treatment for those who agree to it. They will also report disturbing or criminal behavior to police. And they will try to respond to anyone with "questions or concerns about encountering someone who lives on the street," according to a carefully worded administration statement. The teams also plan to confer with business owners weekly to keep track of how well the effort is working.
Kenney's readiness to respond to homelessness and try new approaches is welcome. But the outreach's temporary and familiar nature raises questions. The city says it will gather data and evaluate the program, and it should make changes if need be. Officials also have to do the sort of hard work that can reduce the homeless population over the long term.
Everyone in Center City can see that homelessness has become a more noticeable problem. Officials will have to be compassionate but assertive to reverse the trend.