Quote:
Originally Posted by Tokenconservative
Link? LIIIINNNKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!????
How come we have none of these here? My state is in the top 7 hit "hardest" by the foreclosure "crisis."
No tent cities here. Lots of "homeless" illegals camping out by the river...oh....maybe you meant THOSE people?
Tokie
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Tent City;
Sierra Vista Herald | The Bisbee Daily Review
City tells homeless to leave 'tent city'
By Gentry Braswell
Herald/Review
Published on Friday, November 09, 2007
SIERRA VISTA — Homeless people in a “tent city” area between Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway and the Highway 90 Bypass are being given notice by city police that they must soon leave the area.
It has been suggested that this process is a result of Wal-Mart’s pending development on the property, but that is not the case, said city spokeswoman Marie Hansen.
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This action stems largely from complaints from families who use the nearby city athletic complex, Hansen said.
Sierra Vista police Capt. Brad Roland, who is also on the board of directors for the Good Neighbor Alliance, has been involved with the local “homeless count” for the last three years.
“There is an (ongoing) increase in the number of the camps that we usually see when we’re doing the homeless counts,” Roland said.
It is not known why the local homeless population continues to increase, he said.
So far, officers have made contact with about a dozen homeless residents in the area and provided them with a local list of the various amenities and institutions that are available. There are probably about 20 campsites in “tent city” right now, he said.
Hansen said there will likely be a clean-up effort by the city government once the squatters have left that area.
There has also been stronger enforcement in Sierra Vista of state laws that make begging or otherwise soliciting in public areas illegal if not specifically authorized.
For example, the nature of panhandling that used to occur frequently in the CVS/Safeway parking lot has changed. Roland said this is because of multiple complaints from area business owners and customers who consider the behavior a nuisance, which compelled stronger city enforcement of the unauthorized soliciting law.
Apparent panhandlers still can be seen on at traffic access points in the CVS/Safeway parking lot, but they typically no longer are holding up signs that ask for food or money.
herald/review reporter Gentry Braswell can be reached at 515-4680 or by e-mail at
gentry.braswell@svherald.com.
ALSO...
We a major trash problem by the illegal immigrants.
Sierra Vista Herald | The Bisbee Daily Review
Report shows border trash a major issue
By Jonathon Shacat
Herald/Review
Published on Thursday, October 25, 2007
BISBEE — It’s a long-standing concern of border-security proponents: Illegal immigration and smuggling cause significant environmental damage, says a report recently released by the Bureau of Land Management.
The annual report for fiscal 2006 details efforts by the bureau and partner organizations to mitigate the impacts on lands in Southern Arizona.
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The Bureau of Land Management recently released a report that outlines the damages on lands in southern Arizona caused by illegal immigration. Trash is a significant problem. Photo submitted by BLM. Deborah E. Stevens, public affairs specialist for the Bureau of Land Management, said the purpose of the report is to build public awareness and get attention to the issue.
“Tremendous numbers of people and organizations are doing work. We kind of want to let people know what we are doing and what kind of project work is going on,” said Shela McFarlin, special assistant for international programs for the bureau.
More than 225,000 pounds of trash related to smuggling were collected, according to a press release on the report. Another 900,000 pounds of litter that resulted from both smuggling and illegal dumping were removed.
About 24 million pounds of trash cover thousands of acres of public and tribal lands. The most visible items are drinking bottles, clothing and food refuse.
Illegal roads and trails cause damages to resources on the landscape. There are also damages to infrastructure, such as gates, ranges, fences and water tanks.
Also as a result of the project, more than 75 projects were completed, ranging from cattleguard repair to re-vegetation. The project also involved rehabilitating more than 100 routes and maintaining 26 miles of roads.
Also removed were more than 130 abandoned vehicles and 1,902 abandoned bicycles. Removal of the vehicles, which are often burned, is difficult and expensive because care must be exercised to avoid further damage to the environment.
“Across federal and tribal lands in southern Arizona, significant natural and cultural resources are also being damaged, along with sensitive wildlife habitats,” says the release.
W. Richard Hodges, a rancher who owns property along the border, said the impact of illegal immigration is also evident on his private land in Cochise County. “The migrant trails are substantial,” Hodges said. “I can run 30 head of cows, and they can go to different points on my pasture, and a cow path will be 18 to 20 inches wide, and it’s six or eight inches deep.”
“Where the illegal immigrants walk, I’ve got a path that is 36 inches wide,” he continued. “Nothing grows along it and there is every kind of piece of garbage you can imagine.”
He has found numerous items on his land, including cell phones, baby diapers, plastic bottles, backpacks and clothing.
The BLM report is online: blm.gov/az/st/en/info/newsroom/undocumented_aliens.htm.
Reporter Jonathon Shacat can be reached at 515-4693 or by e-mail at
jonathon.shacat@bisbeereview.net.