From BetterSolutions4Anaheim:
More than a dozen Anaheim residents and business owners went to the Anaheim City Council meeting on Tuesday to ask the council to rescind its support for the County’s proposed 200-bed homeless shelter at 1000 Kraemer Place, criticized the lack of information and outreach from the County and the city. They agreed with the need to help the homeless, but were adamant that the proposed site in the Anaheim Canyon Technology Center was a poor location.
“I’m asking you to rescind your support for the homeless shelter at 1000 Kraemer Place,” said Marian Amparan. “I’ts a little over half a mile from the intersection of La Palma and Blue Gum. My son attends Valenica High School and walks home via the route of Blue Gum to our home near Rio Vista Elementary School. I’m concerned with the safety of my family and neighbors.”
Amparan continued:
“In 2013, the Anaheim Police Department responded to an average of 503 homeless-related calls for service each month, most of which were public nuisance or disturbance-related – a 27% increase from 2012. To their credit, Anaheim PD started a program with the homeless outreach team that supposedly reduced those numbers, though we still have a homeless woman that is mentally ill and lives in our neighborhood, stealing mail, sleeping in our street corner, and leaving trash. My kids have seen her urinating and changing her clothes. She stays in our area because her sister lives on our street.”
“It stands to reason that many transients stay in the neighborhoods that they consider home, which will be near the proposed shelter. My neighbors called the Anaheim PD regarding the mail theft but were told nothing could be done because she’s mentally ill.”
“How can we ensure our safety when multiple mentally ill homeless people will be in our vicinity? How can I ensure my son’s safety as he walks home from school if he encounters a mentally ill person who was brought to the area because of the shelter?”
“Believe me, I am not opposed to a shelter for the homeless. I know there are good people who need assistance to get back on their feet – good families that are down on their luck. Unfortunately, according to a research summary by the Treatment Advocacy Center, approximately one-third of the total homeless population includes individuals with serious untreated mental illness.
“This proposed site is not a good location; it’s too close to homes and minors walking home from school. Again I urge you to rescind your support of the shelter at this site.”
“I’m here to speak in opposition, not merely for myself but for many of my families and neighbors who couldn’t make it today,” said Anaheim resident Anne Chhouk. “We are now 800 people strong in opposition to this homeless shelter and we ask you to hear us out.”
Ms. Choouk told the City Council:
“We have real concern for our safety. A woman who spoke at our community meeting talked about her daughter being stabbed by a homeless person. Another person talked about public defecation on her front lawn where her saw it; self-medicated from prescriptions found in the trash can.
“We have a real concern about our safety. We are personally invested everyday to come home, to our home, which is our sanctuary, we paid a lot of money for our residences, and we don’t think 1000 Kraemer Place is the right place.”
Chris Vance, owner of Piano Empire, located several feet from the proposed homeless shelter site, explained his opposition to the City Council:
“I spent a lifetime to get to where I am. It’s been hard work with great sacrifice. Also, I have responsibilities to provide for my employees, my business family,” said .
“A piano store and a homeless shelter cannot co-exist adjacent to each other. My store is retail and sells a high-ticket, luxury musical product to families usually parents buying for their children. All those within my industry believe my business will fail being next to a homeless shelter. Chances are the demise of my business will be a slow, frustrating death.”
When the Anaheim City Council voted in the spring to support the Kraemer Homeless Shelter project, very few affected Anaheim residents were aware of the plan and the meetings were dominated by the homeless advocacy establishment. It is significant that residents learn about the 200-bed shelter plan, they are increasingly organizing and speaking out in opposition to this location.
During the council communications portion of the meeting following the public comments, Councilwoman Kris Murray directed staff to urge the County to re-schedule its community forums so that residents can get some answers to their questions, noting they had raised “valid concerns.” Councilman James Vanderbilt said that both he and former Councilwoman Gail Eastman had attend the August 5 community forum sponsored by BetterSolutions4Anaheim and the Orange-Riverdale Homeowners Alliance.
[Note: I am part of BetterSolutions4Anaheim]
What an on going issue. There are no solutions to the homeless population. There have always been and will always be this population. One can complain and fret and offer everything and the kitchen sink, however, it will never be enough. There will always be homeless and there will always be NIMBY’s. Is this a negative attitude, no, it is a realistic look at an unsolvable problem. And no I do not support 200 bed shelters. That is only opening a can of worms. They are trying to close Fairview State because placing folks with developmental special needs in a large facility is not appropriate, and yet we are trying to open a large facility for persons that are mentally ill or homeless for a variety of reasons. Why don’t we move the folks to Fairview in Costa Mesa. There are plenty of bed spaces available at Fairview. Or any of the other state developmental centeers.
County of Orange needs to help these people get on their feet. All along the bike trail there are a lot of homeless people that seem to be okay however they choose to hang out and live along the river. There is a lot of trash all along the river that seems to be more each time. Many of us ride our bikes and have to go through the awful smell of urin and trash. the location near Kramer will only lead the way for many more homeless to walk through the river or ride their bike to the Kramer exit and migrate to Anaheim. Not a good idea for the proposed location on Kramer.
We live approximately 1 mile from the proposed site and are very near the Santa Ana River Trail, Olive Park, and Eisenhower Park. We have experienced in increased level of homeless along the river trail and in our parks. Our son plays baseball at Olive Park and the homeless hang out in the rear of the field drinking and charging their cell phones. Recently, one of these drunken jerks scared the snot out of a visiting 10 year old player by hopping into the pitching cage while he was warming up. The visiting coach said they loved the facility but did not it was a safe environment and said they would not come back. If they place a shelter there it will act as an attractant for more homeless to encamp along the river and hang out in the parks. We don’t need this! We value our homes, neighborhoods, and families and we DO NOT want to deal with the problems associated with this problematic population.
Sad to see that there was no mention on the comments of those who where there advocating for shelters and who have given the solution which has already been proven to be effective. The problem is the community who have a lack of knowledge and have no concept of the issue of homelessness, yes there are some criminal element out there but know there are crimnials who have homes and prey on the homeless.
People know the problem is already in their front yards and don’t know that there are veterans, disable, elderly, women and teens who come from abusive homes or those who have lost their spouse and homes and who just might be one of your neighbors you never meet.
Homelessness could happen to anyone at any time in any catastrophe. Sad to hear that even one women comment was that she wants the bathrooms of the parks close. Common senses tells you that the homeless are people who like you and I need to go to the bathroom and if people don’t want them pissing in the streets then ask for Porta-potties to be open 24/7 not close the bathrooms or else people will have a bigger proble with them having to do their business outdoors.
Well here is the one comment spoken in that meeting with a solution.
Regarding homeless shelters and the misconception of the communities who are driven by fear and uncertainty
They know their facing the homeless problem already in their front yard and don’t realize that is bound to get worse when we find ourselves with an epidemic of chronic homelessness around the community if the city don’t open shelters or safe zones soon specially for women and teens who are in harms way and who come from abusive homes. this is just one of the concerns.
Facts From The National Alliance to End Homeless endhomelessness.org
Chronic homelessness is defined as long-term or repeated homelessness.
Chronically homeless people have a serious physical or mental disability, including mental illnesses like schizophrenia, alcohol or drug addiction. For this population, permanent housing linked to services is necessary to achieve stability.
Permanent supportive housing has been shown to be not only successful at ending chronic homelessness, but is also cost-efficient. People experiencing long-term homelessness often costs significant tax dollars – through emergency room visits, run-ins with law, incarceration, court time and access to existing homeless programs.
A number of cost and case studies have demonstrated that permanent supportive housing largely or totally offsets these costs while ending homelessness.
A study performed by homelessness scholar Dennis Culhane showed that in New York City, each unit of permanent supportive housing saved $16,282 per year in public costs for health care, mental health, and criminal justice. The savings alone offset nearly all of the $17,277 cost of supportive housing.
A 2009 Seattle study found that moving chronic disoriented people into permanent supportive housing resulted in an approximately 33 percent decline in alcohol use for clients and saved nearly $30,000 per year per person.
The vast majority of people who experience chronic homelessness interact with multiple service systems, providing an opportunity to prevent their homelessness in the first place. Promising prevention strategies focus on people who are leaving hospitals, psychiatric facilities, substance abuse treatment programs, prisons, and jails.
Many places like Utah have proven to be effective by implementing homes first model which not only have saved millions in tax dollars a year but are in the verge of ending homelessness in their counties.
The definition of a shelter is a place giving temporary protection and help for people to get back on their feet. A shelter it’s a transition to many programs that will help the homeless to get back into working class or schooling by give them permanent housing that are founded by nonprofit organizations and churches around the communities.
Showing the communities that the shelter will start pulling people out of the streets of their community and that it will be the start of ending homeless not only in their community but around the surrounding areas and save tax dollars in the long run.
It has already being proven to be effective so it could only makes common sense.
If the people keep listening to this businesses that are ignorant to the homeless situation and can only presume the worse it’s like the blind leading the blind.
When I was ten I remember living next to an alcoholic rehab home and not once can I remember were there people loitering around where I lived. Now I have being talking to many homeless people around my neighborhood this days and have come across many different stories of why they happen to become homeless. Not one choose to be homeless but one who I befriended his name Josh Collins who choose to be homeless for the reason that not only that he felt that God commanded him to sell all and become homeless but to be able to understand and help the homeless. Now his an advocate for the homeless
People got to know that is not easy to be homeless just try to be homeless for a week or just leave your doors and windows open at night and see if you can have a good night sleep. Only then will you see that is not a choice that someone makes unless they have no choice.
If you want to understand more about the solution. There is a video on Youtube called overcriminalized by brave new films