When Supervisor John Moorlach, who is the current Chairman of the O.C. Board of Supervisors, suggested in January that we turn the defunct bus station into a permanent homeless shelter, I suggested, “Why not set up a permanent encampment for the homeless over at the Great Park in Irvine? They have plenty of space. I am sure the OCTA can set up a bus line to give them rides to their new home.”
Apparently Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido read my post. He told the O.C. Register this week that “Long term the Great Park, whose board he sits on, could become a resource, providing space for housing and a rehabilitation center.”
Well said Mayor Pulido!
Pulido also said that homelessness is not just a local problem and that too is correct. Ignore the antics of the useless Occupiers – they aren’t going to solve homelessness or any other issue. And as Pulido indicated start putting pressure on Gov. Jerry Brown. Homelessness is a state problem – and a societal one at that. Perhaps if Brown wasn’t continuing to feed the police state he inherited from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger we might have the money to help solve the homeless crisis…
Oh those “useless Occupiers” and their antics! Why do you have occupiers on the mind Mr. Pedroza? What antics are you referring to?
As for Mayor Pulido. I congratulate that type of thinking. It sounds like bold progressive thinking.
It is refreshing to hear the powers that be analyzing different possibilities. So how do we get the city, county, and state to all stop passing the revolving buck? Hmmm, Maybe the silly people such as Occupiers need to keep exposing the situation?
Please tell us more about the Mayor’s plan. Would the space at the great park be like an internment camp or debtor’s prison? would they have to sleep in cells or cramped halls? Would the “homeless” be allowed to leave or would they have to wander the yard and be in constant rehabilitation lock up? Would they get to go wander the District or the Spectrum by day or would that put them in violation of an anti-loitering ordinance?
They might have to wear “I love Beth Krom” t-shirts…
I too, think a permanent center for OC homeless at the Great Park would solve a problem that no city has been able to solve satisfactorily thus far. WIth public transportation and the basic amenities available at the site (such as a grocery/drug store, urgent care), this could be a great solution to the problems of the homeless.
And I believe the Great Park has a farm on it, so the homeless could be taught farming skills and actually work on the farm to help pay for their own upkeep. What a great idea!
The question is: Would they be able to make enough pay doing organic farming (beautiful idea) etc. in order to keep up with their citation fines for wandering off the site of their new debtor’s prison plantation? Maybe the Corporation that get’s the contract will get to charge them $3.00 for a roll of toilet paper? And as for the guests that go to visit or work there, How much are those parking meters going to cost? Maybe they will institute one hour Max. meters? Maybe they can offer $5.00 to $10.00 Valet Service for visitors that just want to roll on up n there?
So many profiteering opportunities on the backs of the “homeless”. it is probably making some contractor drool as we speak.
They could also detox on the farm…
Any organized effort to resolve homeless situation will fail as any socialistic idea of forcing food into the peoples mouth failed.
There were homeless in the old communist CSSR too.
The Mayor Pulido should concentrate his effort on protecting homeless’ unalienable rights and that is all.
For that matter Pulido should do same for the homeowners and rentals as well.
Anything more would be an encroachment on such rights.
If we do that than homeless would eventually disappear because they would gain right to life liberty and pursuit of the happiness.
However, I doubt that Mexican Magnificent Seven left-liberal-progressive-socialists do understand unalienable rights and that is why there are homeless.
I should add that socialists should promote housepooling (as in carpooling) which would substantially reduce homelessness at any given time.
The “homeless” just want to be left alone.
Don’t mix up the “addict” the “drunk” the “mentally ill” that hang out in the same areas that “homeless” stay.
Although obtaining an accurate, recent count is difficult, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2003) estimates, 38% of homeless people were dependent on alcohol and 26% abused other drugs. Alcohol abuse is more common in older generations, while drug abuse is more common in homeless youth and young adults (Didenko and Pankratz, 2007). Substance abuse is much more common among homeless people than in the general population. According to the 2006 National Household Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), 15% of people above the age of 12 reported using drugs within the past year and only 8% reported using drugs within the past month.
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/addiction.pdf
And of the estimated 744,000 people who are homeless on any given night, 40 to 45 percent of them have a serious mental illness.
http://anxietypanichealth.com/2008/10/15/a-national-shame-the-mentally-ill-homeless/
What troubles me about this proposal is that so many of the services availible to the homeless and indigent are in central county, they would be too far away.
Irvine and Costa Mesa’s historic refusal to assist in the problem of homelessness has never been bigger.
Not only are the the wealthiest cities of the county they also the most selfish and exclusive.
This was a popular topic several years ago when Irvine’s political units FOUGHT tooth and nail to keep the low income housing on the North side of MCAS TUSTIN, pushing the less affluent towards Santa Ana.
I believe it was two realtors and a then city council member who championed this based on thier belief “They’ll be closer to services”.
The great park is a wonderful place to provide shelter and retraining for the homeless.
But, with more and more of it being handied off to housing developlers: GOOD LUCK.
“We care about the homeless……as long as they don’t live around here” _ they don’t have homes. That’s the point.
Yes, Santa Ana is forced to bear the entire onus for the OC homeless problem. It really needs to be a joint effort, but all you get is empty posturing.
If the State of CA wasn’t spending so much on maintaining our police state there would be more money to help the homeless.