Slum, blight, crime, Sober Homes and the belief that development will rid us of our problems are issues that we face on a daily basis in Lake Worth. While elected officials seem only interested in spending millions to attract developers as evidenced by what they have approved to spend at the Park of Commerce (this year alone is $11 million), and money that will take 100-200 years to recapture in ad-valorem taxes, the city falls further into a hole of urban decay.
Ever since John Szerdi got defeated in his re-election bid for Commissioner District 4, this trio commission of Maxwell, Triolo and Amoroso have been perplexed and in somewhat of a funk. They ask themselves, "Could the impossible happen again?" The answer is "yes."
In spite of their well-heeled political connections and special developer interests, their record is not a rosy bunch of accomplishments. All you have to do is drive around our city to see exactly what I mean. Hell, even at the entry of city hall there are steps that are never swept or pressure cleaned that are contributing to the blight. They took out the bushes there as they were never maintained. The homeless park themselves on the several benches directly in front of the "people's temple" as city manager Bornstein would say. Many are being dumped in Lake Worth and the homeless population here is growing leaps and bounds.
"Most of Lake Worth’s homeless population can be found in Bryant Park, the Cultural Plaza, Dixie Highway and anywhere that there’s an overgrown property where they can hide. There are some who camp at City Hall at night. We know many of them by first name," Bornstein said in a Palm Beach Post December 5 article. "They’re part of the fabric of our community.”
We just can't keep playing the blame game--it's out of control. I would say that most of the homeless want a roof over their head...a home. Perhaps strengthening rent regulation laws would preserve affordable housing and protect tenants which would allow the homeless and other struggling Lake Worthians to have a place to live and then they could get a job. New York has rent controls and rent stabilization programs. We need a standard of reasonableness as rental rates are exorbitant in this poor city.
Read Michael Moore's Letter to the Editor in the Palm Beach Post. Michael is a Lake Worth resident who advocates for those in need. The Homeless Coalition of Palm Beach County is offering a lot of free services (see graphic below)to the homeless such as haircuts, clothing, food and health screening on January 22..
25 comments:
Actually I got a kick out of the graphic from the Homeless Connect folks as I doubt seriously if anyone homeless has a tablet, laptop, etc. who could view it. I hope that they pass out flyers, etc. to the homeless so that they can take advantage of this offer.
I don't think high rent is the problem in our little town, rent here is much more affordable in LW then elsewhere. I think the sober homes are spinning off a lot of the folks you see in Bryant Park and the Plaza, these are sober home drop outs. We are somewhat constrained about what we can do about the sober homes, although we could enforce our short term rental law (but special interest vacation property owners are against that). Otherwise, the best way to tackle the homeless problem is to be less accommodating. I hate to say it, but the feedings by the Welly church need to stop and PBSO and the downtown businesses need to push these folks somewhere else. Homelessness is, unfortunately, a problem we cannot solve on our own, but it should also not be a problem that is pushed into our city by our neighbors. You don't seem homeless in Palm Beach, why is that? What are they doing that we can't do?
Anything is a problem when you have no job and no money. Rents are high IMO. A 2br 2ba is over $1,300 a month on avg.
These "homeless" have smart phones, they have wic cards, they get disability payments. They don't want jobs, they want drugs. They get feed by do gooder groups.
There are many apartment and rooms for $600-$800 monthly. There are apartment in Lake Osborn neighborhood for $35,000.
Haitians and Guats buy and rent houses, but these "homeless" can't? They aren't veterans or down on luck, they are druggie theives, liars and thugs!
Yes, there may be apartments in Lake Osborne for $35,000 but they have NO $$$$. Thanks for your input, anonymous at 6:40...you sound like a sweet guy.
Some of the homeless are all of those things; others are not especially the children.
They have no money because their focus is drugs not work. I used to enjoy a coffee and my book in a local place. Yesterday as I tried to relax a filthy bum sat right behind me and babbled nonsense, won't bother to go back.
You might find interesting? Lynn, you have mentioned John Szerdi's name so many times and it all just doesn't matter anymore. He's gone - done. You choose to mention Szerdi's name 4 to 1 over Ryan Maier's name, even with the brew ha ha over code enforcement, and that's in just last year.
In the last year, Ryan Maier has really not offered one piece of legislation or ordinance that helps propel the city forward. As evidenced with the last commission meeting as his agenda item has a national and global demand for attention and was a total waste of human endeavor for its direct and immediate impact on LW and the emergent issue we face.
Ryan Maier's has a downtown business, and he lives downtown, what has he proposed to do about the homeless problem? Nothing. In fact, his new salon on J St is in the same location that was recently inhabited by the churh that now meets in the bar across the street, that caters to the sober/recovery community (which is fine), but THAT community is the source of these waves of new faces in town, and with a 96%-97% failure to stay clean rate, they're getting bounced out of their 'sober housing' right onto our streets. These people and their folks (mostly rich Yankees from the NE)are sold a bag of beach sand and palm trees with the hope to get clean (all good) but the business model the scum operators use makes them rich while we endure the addicts suffering, relapsing, and overdosing on our streets.
Expecting the citizens of LW to pick up the tab for housing them, feeding them, giving them jobs... Are you out of your mind?
Lake Worth businesses want to give permanent Lake Worth resident the jobs...
Not some kid here for 2 weeks - 2 months with little to no, or poor job history, no skills. It costs too much money to hire and train someone to waste both resources on these short-timers just waiting to relapse.
So there you have it Mr Commisisoner Maier, I've pretty much laid out the problem for you. How about you coming up with an original, creative thought or program that could remedy this epidemic and find the finding in our budget to pay for it.
And if you do, and if you can solve this national epidemic of addiction and homelessness then my hats off to you and I think you should run for President of the United States, I'd even vote for you!
Where are the homeless children in Lake Worth?
Have no idea why you are going after Ryan Maier...you must be obsessed with him. Are you trespassing on his property again to see if there is some code violation that you can drum up? In fact, he has voted with this trio 99.9% on all issues.
Commissioner Maier is a businessman in our city and would like very much to solve the homeless problem here as well as the many other issues we have. He is one vote. Why not direct your anger to one of the trio?
To say he has not brought one thing forward for an Ordinance or law, the city never has told us who puts what on the agenda, one of my gripes I might add. At the last meeting, the two national issues did have a commissioner's name attached to them, one of the first times I have seen this since these people got elected.
Szerdi's name is mentioned a lot by me because he was trounced at the last election by no other than Ryan Maier, the guy you love to hate who is not involved in any special interests in our city unlike Szerdi and Hudson Holdings.
@7:45--Families often don’t come forward due to fear of having their children removed; disabled individuals avoid being counted because of concerns about being hospitalized. but be assured, anonymous, there are entire families who are homeless. We seem to have the chronic ones here in LW.
Its telling that illegal immigrants have work and housing yet this crowd of americans loiter in our parks and streets bored out of their minds. I have been welcomed in some of those homes and found them clean and comfortable. Anyone can do it.
Szerdi isn't the kind of people we need to move here, the work and money he put his home is inspirational.
No one is talking about how much money he has or how much money he poured into his home...good for him. Lake Worth certainly welcomes more people who want to live here and invest. What happened to John Szerdi was his connection with Hudson Holdings and all the politics and intrigue. That was his downfall. I am rather sure he is a great guy to know one on one. As the competing campaign slogan said, People, not Politics. That is what it really should be all about.
No, good for lake worth. Isn't that what we want, people who invest in this town. How much money he has doesn't make any difference, his commitment and investment speaks volumes.
We are being invaded by the homeless because our elected officials have allowed it.Oh boo hoo we can't do anything. PBSO is too LAZY to do anything. Nobody in charge gives a rat's ass. The next time a PBSO deputy refuses to do anything after being called by the public that deputy needs to be fired. We pay PBSO how much to do jack shit nothing? Instead of Pam Triolo kissing PBSO ass, it's time we had a Mayor kicking PBSO ass and calling them out in public for not doing their job which is protecting the people of Lake worth.
And BTW, why does anyone in Palm Beach county have to pay a 25 dollar yearly alarm fee to PBSO? It's really ridiculous.
So according to bow tie boy derelict addicts,hookers and thieves are "the fabric of Lake Worth" while he calls citizens that wanted to welcome him into town and talk about issues "unfriendliness".This ass has to go.
And we have the e-mails to prove it.
now we are blaming Lake Worths rents for being too high? I've heard it all
even the illegals are able to secure housing, maybe some people just don't want to be helped......its fun for them to be professional layabouts all day long
Illegals live 10 to 20 people in a house sometimes. They definitely have multiple occupiers.
Homeless people can't afford anything. Poor people can't afford the average rent here although we have plenty of "affordable rentals." It depends on what your circumstances are in life. These people need free housing until they can get jobs.
Have you ever heard that before?
Poor people can't afford the average rent ANYWHERE, not here, Boynton or WPB, ect!
10:05 is correct, the leadership in this City needs to call out PBSO for refusing to do their jobs, just listen to the comments from the last commission meeting, everyone is upset about the homelessness camp in our city and the complete lack of response by the City and/or PBSO. Even folks who sing PBSO praises normally are upset.
Why is city leadership and cm ignoring the residents? These are not poor people down on their luck, these are hobo druggies who don't want to work and want to hang out all day and do drugs and drink in the middle of our city. One of my co-workers who lives in the South end of WPB came into my office last week and said he was picking up dinner at Too Jay's in LW and was blown away that we have a homeless camp in the middle of our city. He was really sad about it and asked me why in the world the City allows this. I told him I don't know, I call and email commission and CM and they do nothing, I call PBSO and they do hardly nothing.
The last thing that they want is another lawsuit. I can see it now...the ACLU.
Interesting that you completely sidestepped a comment about your boy toy maier. The point was that he's done NOTHING to help the city. Isn't Bryant Park and some of the other hot spots for the homeless in his district? The answer is YES. Why doesn't he even attempt to mention a possible solution? His handlers tell him not to.
Your comment is offensive.
Go ask Andy to come up with a solution as the homeless are hanging all over the downtown and in the Cultural Plaza.
Ask this majority commission who has the power to implement a solution.
Who are is handlers? He has a college degree. Do you think someone has to think for him now?
Where do you people come up with this denigrating stuff. Go get a job.
"Over it" seems to have a real problem with Ryan for not doing what no body else is doing. Personal grudge? Oh please, do you mean to tell me you want to bring up that disgraceful rant by Scott Maxwell that somebody heard somebody at Starbucks say Ryan had turned a single family home into a duplex? That only goes to prove what I have heard from other sources: that one of the unlisted jobs of Code Enforcement is political retribution. Yea, Ryan's a magician--and Scott Maxwell is level headed. And I have a bridge in New York 4 sale 4 you.
The advice from our legal eagles is to do nothing because you might get sued. (re homeless problem)
Our economy broke a lot of people and unfortunately many stayed broken. Ever try getting a job when home is a car? But I think this is a national problem and we have more of it because our weather is more forgiving if you are on the streets. Do some reading: we have been a haven for the wealthy and famous who need rehab for some time. The problem now is FRAUD and Sober Homes. Flying people in from out of town and dumping them on the streets so they can make money, period. There are ADA protections, but I think that only applies if you are in recovery. Why we can't arrest for drug use on the street is beyond me. And public urinating, intoxication etc. Maybe Over It could come up with some positive suggestions himself? Or maybe he just dislikes Ryan.
Nevertheless, this is a growing problem nationally and really needs to be addressed. I hear these unscrupulous places charge $1500 for a drug test, and test 3Xper day. CaChing! Does Gov. Scott still own these testing places...or his wife? We need a sting operation to expose the fraud and start shutting these places down. And that is not going to happen by just doing nothing.
The pee test run between $600 to $1500 per test.
Many sober homes are testing their 'clients' daily.
Mast sober homes have 2 recovery addicts in each bedroom.
Most sober home businesses locate in 3 or 4 bedroom homes.
The pee pee math... Average wide spectrum drug and alcohol owe test $1000 times 6 addicts = $6000.
$6000 times 30 days a month (because who knows when they're gonna fail again) equals $180,000
And that's just the pee pee testing... And oh by the way, our illustrious Gov Scott's wife us the principal in a urine testing company... Hmmm, into fount she learned how to scam and fleece us from her crook of a husband.
The biggest hurdle with all these
sober homes and there's wake of human tradegy issues is the federal protections afforded them under laws of ADA and HUD.
Surely the far smarter people in Boca and Delray have all the answers....
While this is all very upsetting this is a national issue that we are on the front lines combatting.
I will tell you that PBSO and all police agencies are somewhat constrained at what they can do.
Towns, cities, counties and states are also very constrained with what they can do because of the federal protections afforded these pieces of fraudster sober home operators and the addicts they prey on.
Are you pissed off? Hell yea!!! The solution is taking the money out of the game. The minute the insurance companies no longer pays for these unregulated, unmanaged, un-medically supervised, sober living homes is the moment we can all pray for.
Only providing tighter restraints in Ddicts attempt for 'sober living' will be effective. Cause right now, they are living the life! No job needed to still have a roof over their head, palm trees a swaying while they get to lounge about with no direction or purpose except to spend thei idle time joining with with their next drug dealer and plot how to panhandle more effectively by being more aggressive and threatening the 'normal' folks into giving them money cause they look gross and crazy. Just say NO!
and thank you PBSO for listening - the video camera device you out into the Cultural Plaa as been very effective, seems many of tongues druggies don't like themselves or their illegal transactions from being video taped. At least the sheriff can add the new and current faces to the assembly of characters on the battle field
I say it's time for the normal people to retake the Plaza - Lynn why don't you and some friend pick a day of the week that you will hang in the park andake they feel uncomfortable... And then I'll get some friend and pick another day. Maybe we can even get Commissioner Maier (within which the Cultural Plaza is in his Discteict!!! - ). I'm sure Commussioiner Amoroso, whose district is to the immediate north would
Be happy to do the same.
Post a Comment