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Angry homeless people and advocates say city, state should declare Long Island state of emergency
By adamg on Wed, 11/12/2014 - 11:54pm
Lisa Jenkins, now living in the woods, and Cherie King, formerly homeless.
Homeless people, advocates, recovering addicts and parents of addicts still on the streets all said the city needs to work faster to replace the treatment programs and shelter beds lost when Long Island shut on just four hours notice on Oct. 8, at a packed meeting at the Blackstone Community Center - and to then do even more for what they said are growing numbers of people now out on the streets, under bridges, in downtown doorways and even on the roofs of 18-wheelers.
A temporary shelter at the South End Fitness Center has no lockers for personal belongings and has turned into a robbery center, they said. And most of the more than 400 people evacuated from Long Island last month still don't have the belongings they were forced to leave behind - which in many cases includes personal papers they need for everything from getting a job to applying for housing. Many of the programs had to leave essential equipment, such as computers, behind as well, meaning they are finding it harder to help their clients.
"My life has been turned upside down the last month," one homeless man told officials.
"It doesn't seem like it's an emergency to you," said one woman whose son is a 19-year-old heroin addict.
Long Island had several hundred lockers for people in the shelter, and the city is still figuring out how and when to use a barge to move their contents to the Woods-Mullen shelter so that people can retrieve them, Dr. Huy Nguyen, acting director of the Boston Public Health Commission, said.
"We had four hours to get 400 people off the island on a bridge that we could not use a bus on safely," he said.
City Councilors Ayanna Pressley (at large) and Tito Jackson (Roxbury) agreed the situation is critical; Jackson said he wants city officials to consider plowing the $90 million they estimate it will cost to repair the Long Island bridge into building new facilities on the mainland now. "Folks don't have three to five years" to wait for the bridge to be fixed, he said. City Councilor Frank Baker (Dorchester) said the state and even FEMA should be brought in, because the sudden closing is really a regional issue.
Nguyen said the city is looking to quickly build a shelter on a city lot at 300 Frontage Rd. off the Southeast Expressway, at a cost of $2.1 million. He said he couldn't give an estimate when it would be ready because part of the answer will hinge on weather - the city would be building it in the middle of winter.
BPHC is already readying two buildings at its Mattapan campus to replace 100 beds for recovering addicts - many nearing release from prison.
Over nearly four hours, people who used the Long Island shelter or the treatment programs there decried what's happened to them since - and to agree with Jackson they can't wait several years for a new bridge. Several said the city never would have waited as long as it did for the bridge to fall apart if it went to a college or someplace in the Back Bay.
Lisa Jenkins said she has been living in the woods since she lost access to the shelter on Long Island, where she would rise at 4 a.m. for her morning routine - take a shower, get some coffee and be off the island by 8:05 so she could get to her job as a personal care attendant.
She and Cherie King, who spent 20 months homeless, said the city needs to pay more attention to homeless women.
"It's wrong for women to be overlooked, because we are as human as men," Jenkins said.
Cleve Rea, who said he spent 30 years as a software developer until depression overtook him, said he gave up a chance to get a cot at the South End Fitness Center tonight to describe conditions there at the meeting. Cots are set up in a third-floor gym, which men have to vacate promptly so tables can be set up for meals. There is no place for people to store their personal items - and they have to leave after breakfast even in bad weather.
"This isn't a shelter," he said. "It's a warehouse. I think we deserve more than a warehouse, because we are human beings."
Rea (r.) describes his situation before the meeting:
Lynnel Cox fought back tears as she recounted how her son, a heroin addict, tried to get into a detox program, but couldn't, because of the Long Island situation. Now, she said, he's out of state.
The meeting began with chants of "Where's the mayor?" An aide said the mayor, who himself is a recovering alcoholic, could not attend because he was released earlier in the day from the hospital for a follow-up procedure related to kidney stones.
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Comments
Great reporting,
but did you see that Howie Carr left RKO, as reported on Boston.com? And over at the Herald, Adriana Cohen is enraged at Kim Kardashian's latest antics!
If the homeless are lucky in this town, the City might get the same crack crew to fix the bridge that just whipped the Anderson Bridge into shape! Maybe in time for the Olympics!
Long Island debacle
It is heartbreaking to watch this unfold. I gave historical tours in Boston Harbor during the dummer and writing a book about the Harbor Islands. Passing under the bridge daily, it was very obvious the Michael Curley bridge was unsafe. Here's what confuses me: Why can't they ferry over everybody to the new dock near Long Island Head Light and Camp Harborview. Yes, it is a bit of a trek and not sure how difficult it would be to trek from the Fort Strong/Long Island Head area go the center of the island. But I strongly believe the ferry is a viable solution. Mayor Wslsh, please help these people in need.
As far as the ferry goes,
As far as the ferry goes, unfortunately Emergency Services need faster access to the island or it would be extremely unsafe. If a large fire broke out and the fire department couldn't access the island with anything but boats, the death toll would be astronomical. Building replacement shelters seems to be the best option for now. The bridge never should have been allowed to deteriorate to this extent. No excuse.
Fire on harbor islands?
Couldn't there also be a fire on George's or Spectacle or Peddock's Island, which host hundreds of visitors every day between May and October? I'm not sure what makes Long Island any different.
(Also - doesn't Long Island have its own fire station and equipment?)
Neither of those islands...
houses hundreds of homeless people every night.
Ferry won't work
Licensing rules require residential facilities to be accessible by ambulance. If someone has a medical emergency, they couldn't get to a hospital.
Speedboats?
Surely the State Police, Massport, and the Coast Guard have a few that could be used in this event?
would be cool, but staff can
would be cool, but staff can't seem to understand how to use 2 hands, one to call 911 and one to inform front desk staff of an medical emergency. I was at Woods Mullen when a woman had an epileptic seizure, the staff member ask if she should call 911??? and you can get barred for having medical emergencies from either or all shelters.
Wait. But was the bridge that
Wait. But was the bridge that couldn't support the weight of a bus for the past several years still allegedly accessible by ambulance and fire truck?
At what dock?
There would have to be a dock somewhere near downtown where the homeless could assemble to get on a boat. As far as I know, all the possible docks are near tourist or upper income areas so ain't gonna happen. There is a reason a good chunk of homeless, addiction, and DTA are concentrated in the "back office" areas of the City, like South Bay. Out of sight, out of mind. But with Long Island closed, the homeless are now too visible to ignore this emergency situation.
Thank you for reporting on
Thank you for reporting on this!
Bad situation
It seems to be taking a long time for the Walsh administration to get its act together on this -- color me unimpressed.
Yeah, the previous
Yeah, the previous administration only had what? 20 years?
you can't wait a couple of years for a new bridge?
I can't understand why you're planning on still being homeless in a couple of years. Kinda says it all, doesn't it?
You want housing? Prove you're working on some sort of plan to become a self-sufficient member of society. You don't have "the right" to be handed housing for free.
If you CHOOSE to not seek help to alter your path, then you have no right to just sit around in public housing for free.
PS:Maybe it's that green hair dye that is the reason you can't get a job, lady.
Holy crap!
Goatse is among us.
odds on
50/50 that the above anon poster has been on the dole at some point in his or her life.
Bad troll clearly proves they
Bad troll clearly proves they haven't read the article because the person they interviewed left in the morning TO GO TO HER JOB.....
Not the one with the green
Not the one with the green hair. She does not work. I know her.
Really? could you enlighten
Really? could you enlighten this audience how much you "know me"?
Hey!
Another fan of Medicare and Social Security recipient and Paul Ryan idol Ayn Rand speaks up and shows some of that famous compassion for others!
You know nothing.
No, they can't WAIT, because they are homeless NOW.
The majority of homeless people ARE working their asses off to improve their situations. And many homeless people are escaping domestic violence, or are disabled. Take your Just World theory and shove it up your ass.
And who are you to judge someone for their appearance, you anonymous coward!
You are cordially invited
to volunteer with me at the Women's Lunch Place on any Saturday of your choosing. I would love for you to meet some of the women there and here about their stories. They are amazing and wonderful and their stories are heartbreaking.
No one should have to go through what those women who have been displaced from Long Island have been through. Life is hard enough for them to have to leave their bed so quickly that they forget to pack medications and paperwork.
76% of homeless are male
"to volunteer with me at the Women's Lunch Place on any Saturday of your choosing. I would love for you to meet some of the women there and here about their stories. They are amazing and wonderful and their stories are heartbreaking."
I invite you to read the statistics that show that 76% of homeless in the US are male. But please do go on about how homeless women are amazing.
What are homeless men, out of curiosity?
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/who.html
The page you are linking to
The page you are linking to relates exclusively to homeless individuals, not families. There are more homeless families with children than there are single adults, and the vast, vast majority of those families are headed by women.
And - there was also shelter for women with children on the island... women doing housing search, and job search - but needed shelter in the meantime
Green-haired lady is actually described as
Formerly homeless and the lady on the left HAS a job but don't let that get in the way of a good self-righteous rant.
On a side note, anyone who can keep themselves together enough to get to a job everyday while being homeless is pretty amazing--huge props to her.
i have housing and income.
i have housing and income.
The tipping point
For years the plight of the homeless has been ignored by the media except at Thanksgiving when celebrities pose with the homeless while dishing out turkey dinners. Last night's meeting exposed the truth about shelters they are robbery centers and sanctuary providers for sex offenders who prey on homeless women.
For years the solution was to ship them off to Shutter Island until the bridge was declared unsafe and these desperate souls came out last night and told the packed audience "we're as mad as hell and we aren't going to take it anymore'
"Permanent housing is a
"Permanent housing is a universal right" as the poster states. Did I skip over the section of the Constitution or Bill of Rights that states the goverment must provide free housing?
Hold on, what?
wtf021, WTF indeed. You don't think shelter is important for human beings? Honestly, I'm curious: what is your ethical viewpoint on this?
How far?
How far do you, personally, think that your personal obligation to provide for the housing needs of other humans on this planet extends?
That's not a trolling question; it's a thorny ethical dilemma for most of us. Speaking for myself, I don't have an answer to it. But it's worth remembering that whenever you say "X is a right" you're actually saying "Providing X is an obligation on all of us."
They seem to be eating well
They seem to be eating well despite a lack of shelter. I sympathize with the mentally ill thrown out on the streets and expected to take medication on their own. The rest of the bunch has to come to terms with their own bad decisions or luck in life and do something to help themselves instead of demanding free stuff from others. I lived on the street for a few weeks once and the experience was a significant motivator to never allow myself to get into that position in life again.
In a just and equitable world, perhaps
But this is not a just and equitable world. It's great you pulled yourself up. There were people who spoke last night who've done the same - but they spoke in support of the people left behind, not to push them further in the mud or tell them to just buck up, that depression you have, that addiction your son has, isn't so bad, get back to work, you loser.
And tell me, where did you get your degree in nutrition to know just what sort of diet these people have?
Woman A Leading Authority On What Shouldn’t Be In Poor People’s Grocery Carts.
Do you sympathize with people
Do you sympathize with people who are physically ill and/or disabled?
Do you sympathize with women and young people who are victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse?
Do you sympathize with gay teens. that are disowned and thrown out on the streets?
"eating well" and "sympathize with the mentally ill"
Psych meds cause weight gain.
http://www.johnshopkinshealthalerts.com/alerts/depression_anxiety/weight...
What a kick in the teeth!
It certainly puts some truth in the phase, "No situation is ever that bad that it can't get worse" They threw these people off the island as if a tsunami was going to hit Long Island with no regard for anyone. No planning what so ever.
But this is the city government we have come to know. Try finding the right department at Boston Inspectional Services to file a complaint and then wait for them to reply if they do at all.
The whole issue of what the island is to be used for and how to assist the homeless needs to be aired out in a public forum.
Yep
The city has known FOR YEARS that the bridge to Long Island was not a good bridge, and now suddenly they decide to evacuate everyone with no plans to get the things that were left behind and nowhere to house the people that relied on the services on Long Island.
For being a city with apparently excellent emergency preparedness, this was a pretty big ball to drop.
Not to defend what the Menino administration did ...
Especially because, yes, people knew for years that bridge was falling apart, but ...
BPHC officials didn't just wake up one morning and decide, hey, today's a good day to just shut the bridge.
The state mandated stepped up inspections two years ago, after that bridge in Minnesota collapsed. According to Huy Nguyen, an inspection on Oct. 8 showed the bridge was in such bad shape it need to be shut immediately. Although he didn't say it last night, at a BPHC meeting a couple weeks ago, BPHC officials said they had to fight just to get four hours - inspectors wanted to shut the bridge right that second, basically.
The one saving grace was that, as bad as the evacuation was, BPHC had been preparing for something like this, it had just updated an evacuation plan in September, so it already was prepared to open the South End Fitness Center and work with private groups (Pine Street Inn and the like) to provide additional space. Obviously it hasn't gone perfectly, but it could have been far worse (also, imagine if this had happened in the middle of February instead of during a fairly mild fall).
Thanks Adam
You are right, this could have been a lot worse.
Evacuation plans strike me as a little more temporary than a permanent relocation plan (like in case of giant storms which would make emergency transport off the island impossible), which someone somewhere must have thought might be a possibility in the future with the bridge being as bad as it is. But, this is probably just a reflection of the larger problem of homelessness in Boston, where it was a good idea to bus hundreds of people to an island for the night rather than look into other housing options.
But yes, all my bitterness aside, I am glad there were at least some plans in place.
Who ordered the evacuation?
If this is a correct account of what happened, then a spotlight needs to be put on who, exactly, in the state ordered an immediate, catastrophic shutdown without adequate notice to the residents of the Island. It was reported at the meeting that several people have already died. Any state official who acted in this irresponsible way should be fired, and if possible, subject to criminal sanction. If they were acting within allowed protocols, then these need to be changed. Did the Mayor attempt to contact the Governor to demand more time? There is a story here that bears investigation, and remedies so something like this never happens again.
What would Jesus do?
Sarcasm off.
Why are so many ex-cons (ESPECIALLY high level sex offenders) dumped on Boston/Cambridge when they get out? And why are they mixed in with mentally ill and down on their luck people with no criminal or at least no serious criminal background? I was on a train last evening and observed at least two guys, one middle aged and one young man, who were obviously schizophrenic and heavily medicated. It is just plain wrong to mix these people up, of course there is abuse, robberies, etc.
To those who say they should 'get s job', or 'take advantage' of help, truth is the help looks much better on paper on on google than it is in reality. The System is really messed up, with plenty of blame on all sides to go around, including among so-called progressive politicians and advocates, not just mean ,old Republicans. Why is it so hard to simply provide adequate, safe, shelter and basic needs for those who need it?
I still don't understand the island part
the Globe story has a few quotes from people about how the facilities better be reopened on the island. How about we build up the capacity in the city to support these people and get rid of the 25 minute bus ride? It's a wasted resource to have a dedicated island to serve the needs of 500-1000 people in a city of 600k people.
My hair is a fading turquoise
And it's Lisa Jenkins who lives in the woods is the one who works full-time.
My hair is reddish purple
and somehow I manage to be a productive member of society with a job and property and all kinds of wonderful things for which I'm very grateful.
I plan on....
... Going pink for 2015.
Probably because you did it
Probably because you did it well and didn't just hapharzardly spray manic panic everywhere and call it a day
Washing out
..Im letting my hair wash out so i dont fry it by bleaching it, but go on with your criticism
They're called roots
That's what it looks like when you're growing your color out or you haven't had time or money to color your hair in a while.
I suppose I should clarify my earlier statement: I have reddish purple hair with a stripe of brown roots. You know what's even more shameful? I have gray hairs at my temples.
Don't let that stop you. I encourage you to judge women's social standing in society based on their hair color.
There's nothing wrong with
There's nothing wrong with commenting on someone's appearance based on how they voluntarily choose to appear.
There is a problem
When your comments are based on how your commanders would view such things, rather than how society in general views such things.
In many workplace settings, this simply isn't an issue.
I had pink hair in college
I had pink hair in college and I had a job.
Home health care aides usually don't make much money, maybe $10, $11 dollars an hour. It's increasingly difficult to afford housing within commuting distance on that. It's just too much money to qualify for EBT or Mass Health, to add to insult. It's not easy work.
Thanks so much for reporting on this!
I say, set up some yurts on the Common and City Hall plaza.
Also, Pressley '18
Why not set up some beds in
Why not set up some beds in the convention center.... it's a huge place; there must be some room there; plus it has bathrooms and kitchens and heat.
I don't think the city is working too hard on this; if a private provider did anything remotely like what the city has done, politicians would be stumbling over one another to file a law suit, The mayor and gov should be ashamed. I hope the national news gets on this story.
Oh please
The Convention Center exists pretty much to line the pocket of Jim Rooney and his cronies.
http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/print-edition/2014/07/18/at-the-mcca-i...
Quick recap - he gets paid more than the governor, already has a $68k/year pension after gaming the MBTA system AND we need to collectively kick in a $1B expansion to keep his gravy train rolling. I'm 100% sure he doesn't want to help the homeless.
Here's an idea
Why don't we tack a small tax, 1-2% (I'm pulling numbers out of the air here for the sake of example) onto every new luxury housing development approved in the city? They get enough tax breaks and screw the most of us with loopholes anyway, and sure, they'll just roll that into the cost to the people who eventually live there. But those of us who can't afford to live there could care less and those who can afford it...well, can afford it.
Regardless, the city and state need to do something, and fast.
It's heartbreaking to know that there are people like Lisa Jenkins who work and still can't afford a place to call home-especially with a job like hers-and the closest thing she had to one is gone.
I also hate to say it, but as the weather gets colder and those with no options get more and more desperate to survive, we're going to see a major increase in crime-just look at the statement about robberies in the temp shelter already.
Smart idea. Make housing even
Smart idea. Make housing even less affordable for working people instead of forcing our elected officials to use the existing budget wisely.
We need better anons
Like, ones that can read with comprehension - or make a rational argument about how taxing luxury development would price out working people.
Sliding scale
As luxury housing gets more expensive the rest of the market gets gradually pulled with it. Low, middle, upper and luxury housing are all valued relative to each other, so the whole scale just slides upwards. People will always sell real estate at the highest price they can get, and being able to point to higher numbers elsewhere in the market only helps that.
For my money, what's pricing
For my money, what's pricing working people out of new developments is the ridiculously low price the developers pay into whatever housing fund so they don't have to build any affordable housing into their developments. That needs to be fixed.
Sorry :(
I didn't stop to think about how much that extra $30k on your $3MM condo would hurt.
If you think about it though, since they can't seem to fill any of these luxury buildings and are knocking prices down to entice people to live in them, adding that cost in to you is negligible-you're really just back to paying market rate. Which is only fair right? And fairness in housing cost is what we're now talking about here, isn't it?
But it's kind of like when stores offer the option to round up for charity. Are you that guy (or girl) that doesn't round up for charity? Don't be the girl (or guy) that doesn't round up for charity.
They are taxed
Most of these new developments have to contain affordable housing units in them. When they do, the cost of the other units is raised to make up the difference. So in essence, they are taxed.
Don't forget all this 'luzury' housing is also paying property tax that didn't exist before, so the city is taking in more general tax revenue...
Hey "Cadillac Deval" -- re
Hey "Cadillac Deval" -- re-open up those shelters and drug detoxification hospitals that were closed under your administration! Drugs and drug-related crime and drug dealing-related crime is OUT OF CONTROL in our neighborhoods!!!!!
Hey Marty -- a little more focus on the epidemic proportion of population of opiate addicts passed out on the steps of the luxury condominiums!! Giving them a cup of methadone is just a taxpayer paid BANDAID!
It is in EVERYONE's back yard!
Ferries to Long Island
There were ferries to Long Island for more than three hundred years before the bridge was built. The main Long Island buildings are clustered near the ferry pier, halfway down the island. Ferries have continued to serve Long Island shelters, carrying goods and supplies to the shelters. Ferries were used between Long Island and Spectacle Island during Spectacle Island construction in recent years. The question is why ferry services can't be expanded to carry those who need shelter ....now!
In terms of safety and emergency services, a vehicle ferry could be staged, there could be a small sub-station on Long Island, and other arrangements explored. Use the Boston Harbor Emergency and Contingency planning capabilities based at the Coast Guard as well.
There's something missing in this scenario.
your great article on the homeless
thanks for the coverage. I initiated the Boston Homeless Solidarity Committee that did a lot of work organizing people for last night. Can I use your phot of Lisa Jenkins and Cherie King for a piece I am freelancing for Workers World Newspaper?
[email protected]
Thanks
Yes.