"The problems are not homeless problems, they are transient problems," says police Chief Art Acevedo. He then goes on to discuss what he considers the difference between transients and the homeless in the downtown Austin area. His voiced concerns are with the crime rate rising in the downtown area and expectations of downtown homeowners.
"A lot of those folks are up to no good" is another lovely quote by our police chief.
He wants the downtown shelters moved to another location....hmmm. Ok, lets just move the problem and it won't be in our faces. Also, lets take this particular community in need away from an area of high resources. Better yet, if he believes that it is a crime problem, is he planning on beefing up security and placing increased law enforcement in 'another location' ? Is extra security and increased law enforcement even the correct answer ? Well let's ask Miami. We recently have looked to their success within their communities. One major difference we saw?
Miami receives about $45 million a year for homeless issues, whereas Austin receives about $4 million to $5 million a year. I believe main challenge for Austin is not location, but funding.
