Drugs, trash, torment prompt city cleanup of homeless sites

YOUNGSTOWN

Bob Altman said it was no surprise that the city is getting rid of the homeless encampments along the railroad tracks downtown.

Altman, who heads up the Help Hotline Crisis Center, said word had gotten around that the city would begin dismantling the camps and moving the homeless who stayed there, long before they actually began the effort Monday.

Altman said he has offered his help to the city in finding people a place to stay. He said oftentimes, homeless people who are eligible for assistance will change their minds several times about taking it.

Help Hotline and Catholic Charities have been trying to help the homeless populations downtown.

City police and other city departments began cleaning up the areas where the homeless stay late last week and continued that effort Monday after an inspection into a fire at one of the encampments found a large amount of trash.

Altman said he can understand the city’s problem because of a number of younger people who have been lured to the encampments to drink or take drugs or even take advantage of some of the older, regular homeless people who police know.

Read more about the situation in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.