for entertainment, recreation or a place to
live, we lose the heart of Denver.” That
judgment still carries weight, but it isn’t just
the heart of Denver that is at risk today.
It would be one thing if the city
treated the homeless like medieval lepers,
banishing them from public sight and
denying them options of shelter, food or
assistance. But the opposite is closer to
the truth. The city spends literally tens of
millions of dollars every year subsidizing
housing and services for the homeless,
from motel vouchers and transitional
housing for the chronic homeless to
outreach workers, specially trained police
and much more. And that doesn’t count
its dedicated fund for affordable housing
or the impressive resources deployed by
private shelters and charities.
Indeed, for years Denver’s approach to
homelessness has included a commitment
to locate shelter for those who need and
want it. Unfortunately, some people need
but don’t want it, or at least don’t want
what they are offered.
Meanwhile, police have issued only a
handful of citations for illegal camping
in most years. But there is no denying
the city has invoked the law to disperse
encampments and to prod people into
moving from various locations where they
would have preferred to stay.
You may argue the city should be
spending still more to assist the homeless
and that we should pass a special tax
on their behalf, as Los Angeles and San
Francisco have done. Fine. Then gather
signatures and put that on the ballot.
Initiative 300 does nothing in that regard.
Or you may point to the high cost of
housing and advocate abolishing restrictive
zoning laws, giving landowners and
developers greater leeway to find cheaper
housing solutions. OK, go for it. (Although
don’t kid yourself: Even if we could
magically reduce rents tomorrow by half, we
would still have a major homeless problem.)
“Nothing about the Right to Survive
Initiative attempts to address the complex
social problems” that lead to homelessness,
points out Cody Belzley of Together
Denver, a business-backed group that
opposes the initiative. “Nothing about
Right to Survive provides additional
resources, or additional support or
innovative strategies to try to actually help
folks who are experiencing homelessness.”
A few years ago a District Court
judge upheld Boulder’s anti-camping
ordinance against a legal challenge with a
warning that Denver residents would do
well to ponder. “This court is persuaded
by the City of Boulder’s argument that
turning public spaces in Boulder into
campgrounds would present problems
concerning sanitation, public health, safety
and environmental damage,” Judge Ingrid
Bakke stated.
Of course it would. And that’s what a
similar policy in Denver would do, too.
Email Vincent Carroll at [email protected].
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MARCH 2019
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