New Homeless Ordinances Ban street living on sidewalk

MissAmericanPie : The fact is, they should not be living on the streets anywhere.

Let us not forget about the County spending thousands of dollars on dinner parties and vacations.

With all of the abandoned buildings around the Houston area, there should be a way to modify them and house them. Any place with a roof has to be better than under streets and overpasses out in the elements.

donnatella :
Too many of these homeless individuals do not want to abide by the rules and regulations that come with this kind of housing.

TXSunDvl : And allowing them to take over the streets and over passes, especially downtown isn't working either. Will we do that for other people who don't want to abide by rules, regulations, and our laws? We can't let lawlessness rule. We enforce the laws and enforce the consequences for disobeying those laws.

Many of those living on the streets are doing so at their will. They don't want to follow rules, so they make their own. There are valid points being made here; there are SO many vacant buildings that could be utilized but again, if one doesn't want to follow rules, that isn't the answer. I'm not sure what is the answer. Now will the ban be upheld, that's another question.

Mayor Turner tried to do something but the ACLU showed up and fought for the rights of those on the street. Funny thing about rights…one person's rights end where another's begins. We need to clone Tom Homan and put him on this matter.

eighteen : What's the connection here? That government is wasteful and inefficient? Aside from that, which is and will always be (and people whine like babies when someone actually tries to change it) what's the strategy?

eighteen : This thread is about City of Houston ordinances. Although they overlap, the County is a completely different entity.

MissAmericanPie :
donnatella :
COH, County, I don't care, it's all the same. Do y'all not remember the 6-8 people that were in charge of the un-sheltered? They got busted spending money that was meant for the un-sheltered on their little Gov't outtings. So, don't come at me trying to correct me on what I'm saying.The point is, a ton of money went into these people's pockets, instead of its intended use, which was to help people with housing/shelters. Quit allowing yourselves to be distracted from the main point with nonsensical points.

donnatella : You are right. There is lots of empty space in the Houston area. The problem is so many homeless just can't live in public housing because they will not follow the rules. It is a sad situation!

donnatella : I love this idea!! However, some of them will just not go to shelters for some reason.

donnatella : I have no doubt Tom Homan could take care of the problem!

eighteen : But your comment was about county misuse of funds. That fraud and abuse has nothing to do with a city ordinance trying to clear the streets. What the county does is not under control by the city. Two completely separate entities.

The City has and continues to plan extensively for this. Homelessness requires a multifaceted approach with an emphasis on humanity and safety for all persons in the City. Supportive services, outreach, building conversions, and much, much more are used every day. Sometimes fluctuations in the number of homeless occur, and that is normal. But Houston's coalition does a fantastic job of housing and servicing those in need while protecting public and private property and people. There's a lot of work being done right now to continue these efforts.