City of Clay frustrated with growing homeless encampment,

1 year ago 29

YES, THEY ARE. JARVIS AND BRITTANY, WE’RE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE LOVELADY THRIFT STORE HERE. AND THIS MORNING, THE CITY MANAGER ACTUALLY CALLED A JEFFERSON COUNTY SHERIFF DEPUTY TO MAKE SURE HE COULD WALK THROUGH THIS ENCAMPMENT AND FIND OUT IF THERE WERE ANY OF THE 5 TO 10 OR 5 TO 15 HOMELESS PEOPLE. THEY KNOW THAT FREQUENT THIS AREA TO KNOW IF THEY WERE HERE BEFORE HE BROUGHT US IN AND GAVE US AND ALLOWED US TO WALK THROUGH THIS ENCAMPMENT. NOW JUST LOOK AT ALL THE TRASH THAT’S LEFT BEHIND IN THIS AREA. THIS IS WHAT WE’VE BEEN LOOKING AT ALL DAY TODAY. NOW, CITY LEADERS BELIEVE THE ONLY WAY TO FIX THIS PROBLEM IS TO CREATE AN OPEN SPACE AND TAKE A STROLLER FROM LOVELADY AND THEN SET A SUITCASE OR CITY MANAGER RONNIE DIXON WALKS US THROUGH THIS WOODED AREA OFF SWEENY HOLLOW ROAD SHOWING US WHAT KIND OF TRASH KEEPS PILING UP HERE. THEY TAKE TARPS AND TENTS OUT, SET THEM UP ON THE RIDGES, AND THEN, OF COURSE, AS THE SHERIFF’S OFFICE COMES THROUGH, THEY ABANDON THAT FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. DIXON SAYS. FOR A YEAR, A HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT HAS BEEN GROWING BEHIND A CHURCH AND THIS SUBDIVISION, WE’VE REFERRED THEM TO JESSIE’S PLACE TO JIMMY HILL MISSION TO THE FIREHOUSE. SO IT’S BY THEIR CHOICE THAT THEY’RE OUT HERE, THE LOVELADY THRIFT STORE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THIS PRIVATE PROPERTY IS TAKING CONSTANT HITS FROM THE HOMELESS GROUP LIVING BEHIND THE STORE. THEY TEND TO BREAK INTO OUR OUR TRAILERS. THEY TEND TO BREAK INTO THE THE STORES BEEN BROKEN INTO AND NUMEROUS AMOUNT OF TIMES. SO IT’S ALWAYS IT’S A BATTLE. THE BATTLE IS SO LARGE. LAST WEEK CITY COUNCIL DECLARED A PUBLIC HEALTH STATE OF EMERGENCY JUST SO DIXON CAN HIRE A CONTRACTOR TO CLEAR OUT ALL THIS MESS. IT’S NASTY. THERE’S NEEDLES, THERE’S HUMAN EXCREMENT. THE CONTRACTOR WILL USE A FORESTRY CUTTING MACHINE TO FLATTEN THE SEVEN ACRES OF BRUSH. DO YOU THINK THIS WILL HELP? I THINK IT WILL HELP BECAUSE THE MAIN THING THAT THESE PEOPLE DON’T WANT IS TO BE SEEN, AND ESPECIALLY TO BE ARREST, ARRESTED AGAIN OR DETAINED. NOW IT’S GOING TO TAKE ABOUT 12 TO 15 TRUCKLOADS TO CLEAR OUT ALL OF THIS GARBAGE THAT’S BEEN LEFT BEHIND HERE. AND ALSO THE CONTRACTOR. IT’S GOING TO TAKE HIM SOME TIME TO COME OUT HERE AND DO THE WORK. ALL BECAUSE HE STILL IS WORKING ON ANOTHER PROJECT. SO WE’RE TALKING ABOUT THREE WEEKS OR SO. THE CITY BELIEVES THAT HE MAY GET OUT HERE AND IT ALSO IT’S ALSO GOING TO COST THE CITY $16,000 TO GET THIS JOB DONE. BUT THE CITY MANAGER TELLS ME IT’S ALL WORTH IT. WE’RE LIVE IN THE CITY OF CLAY TH

City of Clay leaders take action to clear out yearlong homeless encampment

Ronnie Dixon, Clay's city manager, walked with WVTM 13 reporter Magdala Louissaint on Wednesday, showing the kind of trash that's piling up in a wooded area off Sweeny Hallow Road."They take a stroller from Lovelady and then set a suitcase,” Dixon said. "They take tarps and tents, set them up on the ridges. And then, of course, as the sheriff's office comes through, they abandoned that for a couple of days."Dixon says for a year, a homeless encampment has been growing behind a church and a subdivision. “We've referred them to Jesse's Place, to Jimmy Hill Mission, to the Firehouse. So, it's by their choice that they're out here,” Dixon said.The Lovelady Thrift Store on the other side of the private property is taking constant hits from a group of people experiencing homelessness who live behind the store."They tend to break into our trailers. They tend to break into — the store's been broken into a numerous amount of times. So, it's always it's a battle,” Bo Gregory, operations manager for Lovelady Center, said.The battle is so large that last week, the city council declared a public health state of emergency just so Dixon can hire a contractor to clear out all this mess."It's nasty. There's needles, there's human excrement,” Dixon said.The contractor will use a forestry cutting machine to flatten the 7 acres of brush.Magdala asked Dixon whether he thinks these efforts will help."I think it will help because the main thing that these people don't want is to be seen in especially to be arrested again or detained," he said. Dixon also says there are about 12 to 15 truckloads worth of garbage on the property. The contractor city leaders hired can’t start work for a few more weeks because he’s still on another assignment. It’s going to cost the city $16,000 to get the work done, but Dixon says it’s worth it. “We can save way more than that in numeral amount of money just by the damage that's being caused to this personal property and also the property values. We don't want the kids at the school to be exposed to it, and we don't want the neighbors to the property owners to have to deal with it,” Dixon said.

CLAY, Ala. —

Ronnie Dixon, Clay's city manager, walked with WVTM 13 reporter Magdala Louissaint on Wednesday, showing the kind of trash that's piling up in a wooded area off Sweeny Hallow Road.

"They take a stroller from Lovelady and then set a suitcase,” Dixon said. "They take tarps and tents, set them up on the ridges. And then, of course, as the sheriff's office comes through, they abandoned that for a couple of days."

Dixon says for a year, a homeless encampment has been growing behind a church and a subdivision.

“We've referred them to Jesse's Place, to Jimmy Hill Mission, to the Firehouse. So, it's by their choice that they're out here,” Dixon said.

The Lovelady Thrift Store on the other side of the private property is taking constant hits from a group of people experiencing homelessness who live behind the store.

"They tend to break into our trailers. They tend to break into — the store's been broken into a numerous amount of times. So, it's always it's a battle,” Bo Gregory, operations manager for Lovelady Center, said.

The battle is so large that last week, the city council declared a public health state of emergency just so Dixon can hire a contractor to clear out all this mess.

"It's nasty. There's needles, there's human excrement,” Dixon said.

The contractor will use a forestry cutting machine to flatten the 7 acres of brush.

Magdala asked Dixon whether he thinks these efforts will help.

"I think it will help because the main thing that these people don't want is to be seen in especially to be arrested again or detained," he said.

Dixon also says there are about 12 to 15 truckloads worth of garbage on the property.

The contractor city leaders hired can’t start work for a few more weeks because he’s still on another assignment.

It’s going to cost the city $16,000 to get the work done, but Dixon says it’s worth it.

“We can save way more than that in numeral amount of money just by the damage that's being caused to this personal property and also the property values. We don't want the kids at the school to be exposed to it, and we don't want the neighbors to the property owners to have to deal with it,” Dixon said.

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