urbanSTL

my guess: most negative STLToday comments are left by suburban, exurban, and outstate curmudgeons who despise the city out of principle. they therefore support anything that is contrary to "city".

^^^tl;dr

Having an issue with NLEC can't help but seem somewhat NIMBYish, just to be honest. Sticky issue for sure.

To anyone in downtown with a stake in the game, where move the NLEC?

Let's just say it's not downtown responsibility to house all the homeless in the region, nor is it downtowns responsibility to find another location for an illegal and ineffective operation for a multi millionaire.

urban_dilettante wrote:my guess: most negative STLToday comments are left by suburban, exurban, and outstate curmudgeons who despise the city out of principle. they therefore support anything that is contrary to "city".

That, And they're complete a$$holes plain and simple.

I have confidence the city can handle the population with overnight shelters.

I caution that this is a really really touchy subject for downtown residents. We have all witnessed gruesome acts that have taken place near the shelter. We witness vans and police cars from other municipalities dump people on the doorstep weekly only to be kicked out 2 weeks later.

Enough is enough. We aren't a bunch of whiners and yuppies that can't handle the ill effects of society. We have probably put up with a lot more than any other neighborhood has.

Downtown can't fix the homeless issue in STL. The region has to fix it.

You guys have put up with a ton. I applaud your perseverence.

The supply side is fed by Rice's media that broadcasts his shelter as the place to go across 4 states. Our homeless population is magnified because of that. In addition, Downtown had been servicing this entire population while the rest of the region lives comfortably. The homeless has been "out of sight out of mind".


It's time we make this a region wide issue which hopefully increases the influence to get more funding to tackle issue. Blow up the current situation and then fix it.

Michael Powers @mpowerstlouis

The #NLEC is declared a nuisance, constitutes a detriment to the neighborhood. Permit for occupancy revoked.

" will be closed effective May 2015 unless he complies with city terms."

Hmm about what i expected. He'll do just enogh to appease the city. And then 6 months later its back to the same ole crap. Hes not going anywhere. Wish we could just find him another place.

Interesting how this issue is being framed by the events of the past few months--as the protestors outside have been saying (and which is being echoed heavily on Twitter) "homeless lives matter" and such. Seems like a lot of people are viewing this as another example of the St. Louis powers unjustly trampling on the region's poor (and by extension, black). I understand the reaction but it seems in this case people might be protesting without fully understanding why people are concerned (to put it mildly) about Rice and the shelter.

If I were Rice I'd be eager to harness this and continue to frame the narrative as a social justice crusade. Gives him good leverage IMO.

^Exactly. He going to have the donations pooring in now from people who don't fully understand. Which, as much as i didnt like it, i was hoping the city would take a hardline approach and not offer him a chance to improve. Or like i said help find him somewhere else to go

^Thus back to my original question. I get the frustration. But not having a meaningful solution and just asking for NLEC to shut down REALLY smacks of NIMBYism. It's effectively the same as saying, "there's a huge problem that currently only affects us. We need this problem fixed now. I don't care how it's solved. I don't care where it goes. I just don't want it to be my problem."

What a shameful day for St. Louis, throwing the homeless out for the holiday season.

At least the young, urban, gentrifying hipsters in their downtown lofts have been appeased, right?

^Is that sarcasm? Because hes not being closed till may. if he is closed at all

ttricamo--Well because he is busing a good deal of these people in from other areas. If there are city resisident who are homeless there are plenty of other places for them to get help. If larry was gone then maybe the police would drop off people in their own city. I see the police drop people off just as much as the busses

Greatest St. Louis wrote:What a shameful day for St. Louis, throwing the homeless out for the holiday season.

At least the young, urban, gentrifying hipsters in their downtown lofts have been appeased, right?

If you think it's so shameful then let's put 200-300 homeless without services in your backyard. I'll rent the bus. How does that sound?

^Ill pay for the tents. Ill drive out to KC and Indy and pick up some more homeless and they can live on Greatest St. Louis cauldasac.

downtown2007 wrote:

Greatest St. Louis wrote:What a shameful day for St. Louis, throwing the homeless out for the holiday season.

At least the young, urban, gentrifying hipsters in their downtown lofts have been appeased, right?

If you think it's so shameful then let's put 200-300 homeless without services in your backyard. I'll rent the bus. How does that sound?

I live downtown, so it's what I'm used to.

Unlike a bunch of entitled hipster millenials, I understand taking the "bad" with the good of living in the core of a large urban area.

If it were up to me, every ward of every municipality in the St. Louis area would need to provide public housing as a percentage of of its own population.

^HaHa You must hate being surrounded by us hippsters then.

bigmclargehuge wrote:You must hate being surrounded by us hippsters then.

I do when they actively take steps to make life worse for hundreds of fellow human beings, all so they can feel a little more validated about "cleaning up" their neighborhood.

ttricamo wrote:^Thus back to my original question. I get the frustration. But not having a meaningful solution and just asking for NLEC to shut down REALLY smacks of NIMBYism. It's effectively the same as saying, "there's a huge problem that currently only affects us. We need this problem fixed now. I don't care how it's solved. I don't care where it goes. I just don't want it to be my problem."

That ignores the fact that the city of St. Louis does have a plan for homelessness. A relatively successful one. An award winning one that other cities are eager to replicate.

Many of these people will now find that they have other options and be a part of that plan. Others will go back to where they came, whether that's elsewhere in the region, or elsewhere in the midwest. I wish that meant they'd go back and find help, but I'm not sure. But I hope their communities accept their responsibility and do help.

I think we'll have less homeless on the streets of St. Louis after this shakes out, not more.

Worse? Have you actually spoken to a homeless person who has stayed there? When it comes to being homeless it doesn't get any worse than staying at Larry's place where people are drunk, shooting up, and having sex all night.

jstriebel wrote:

ttricamo wrote:^Thus back to my original question. I get the frustration. But not having a meaningful solution and just asking for NLEC to shut down REALLY smacks of NIMBYism. It's effectively the same as saying, "there's a huge problem that currently only affects us. We need this problem fixed now. I don't care how it's solved. I don't care where it goes. I just don't want it to be my problem."

That ignores the fact that the city of St. Louis does have a plan for homelessness. A relatively successful one. An award winning one that other cities are eager to replicate.

Many of these people will now find that they have other options and be a part of that plan. Others will go back to where they came, whether that's elsewhere in the region, or elsewhere in the midwest. I wish that meant they'd go back and find help, but I'm not sure. But I hope their communities accept their responsibility and do help.

I think we'll have less homeless on the streets of St. Louis after this shakes out, not more.

As of 2013, there were about 180 chronic homeless human beings:

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt ... e8055.html

Going into 2015, I guess we should add about 300 to that number.

Math wasn't always my strong suit, but I don't see this number decreasing anytime soon.