What can we do to help the homeless?

[CranBeree]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

isn't waianae tent city an example of that?

[damontucker]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

what i have personally done to help the homeless in my neighborhood...

is that I leave my Hi-5 Recycling on the side of my house...(Since I live next to a park that has a lot of homeless in it)

Eventually, they come by and pick them up to redeem them for a little bit of money.

This does a few things...(helps with recycling problem, gives the homeless in our neighborhoods a little extra money, and keeps the homeless from sorting through my "private" trash on trash pick up days.)

While I can't stand to pay the bottle deposits... I really can't stand waiting in recycling center lines attempting to redeem them. The two times that I have attempted to recycle my stuff.... I have waited in line for at least a half an hour for about $10.00 worth of redemption.

I make more than that at my real job!!! I don't have the time on the weekends to stand in line for such a small amount!!!!

I'm not saying this is an answer to homelessness... I'm just addressing the initial thread of what we can do to "help the homeless"

[alohabear]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

Legalize squatting.

If the State Government can allow homeless to stay in designated areas and pay a sort of squatting fee that would solve a lot of space issues. These squatting fees would be used to pay for general maintenance for area community comfort stations including showers and a small office operated by a non-profit social group to oversee daily operations and maintenance of the facilities.

The State would create a division similar to the City's Parks and Recreation with a director overseeing all facility operators (non-profit organizations). The State would provide funds to ensure the facilities are properly maintained with squatting fees used to subsidize those costs.

The fees would be cheap enough for squatters to afford yet meaningful enough to keep the deadbeats out.

If this all sounds familiar then those living in boats in our many state harbors can understand that if this arrangement can work for boaters, then it can work for squatters. Basically boaters who live in their vessels at the Ala Wai Boat Harbor's pay a slip fee and can use the dock's bathroom and shower facilities to take care of daily hygenic needs.

The difference between boaters and squatters is that boaters pay to stay in one place in a boat. Squatters don't pay (because there isn't any infrastructure to allow for it) but use similar facilities as boaters to take showers and use bathrooms, plus instead of a boat, a squatter has a car.

So if the Government created an area that allows a family to park their car and set up a tent in a designated "slip" and pay a monthly slip fee you would allow people to have a place to live legally...just like boaters.

Obviously rules of conduct would apply and compliance would be strictly adhered to.

tHE STATE could make a camp like in the Grapes of Wrath , with rules and regs...break da rules ...get kicked out.
The only problem is most will say, yeah good idea... BUT NOT IN MY BACKYARD! Sadly it will always be in "someone's BACKYARD".

Did you know that before the homeless ruined it ,KING's LANDING was a beautiful fishing area?.... a lost place of my youth. That's why I get mad.

[timkona]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

That pretty much defines everyone, unless one was a clone grown in a lab.

Therein lies the cognitive dissonance. You can be certain that anybody practicing the "politics of NO" is likely a miseducated hypocrite.

Saying NO is very popular in Hawaii these days. Better to be an activist than a solution maker.

The homeless problem will only get worse because most politicians will continue to bow down to the CAVE people. (Citizens Against Virtually Everything)

[kimo55]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

"What can we do to help the homeless?"



we can try to amuse them, or make them laugh.
But some people say that just pisses them off.

[1stwahine]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

"What can we do to help the homeless?"



we can try to amuse them, or make them laugh.
But some people say that just pisses them off.

...not really Kimo. I make alot of them laugh. I also hug them, show them compassion, care, take time to sit down and talk one on one with them ~ afterall...I was one of them. I embrace them as they embrace me.

They are our fellow brothers and sisters of our Aina who are down and out. Yes, as I stated earlier, many choose to live that way. For many, the Life of the streets is a result of Drugs, Alcohol or both. Mental Illness also is a great factor that grips our Homeless Society. It is when an incident occurs, we are reminded of such horrors. What is even worse is having a Homeless person who is suffering from Dual Diagnosis. Having two or three of the combined ones I listed. Yes, there are many walking "Time Bombs" out there.

Our Politicians tend to be mum about it all. They promise alot but turn there heads. The problems of the Homeless will not go away. It will get worse. It can get better. It starts with us. We have to start caring and showing the Politicians they better start doing their jobs and addressing what is needed for the people.

Homelessness in Hawai'i is REAL.

Aloha,

Lynn Vasquez

[kimo55]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

I write only for your benefit. I open the door for you to walk in...

[1stwahine]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

I write only for your benefit. I open the door for you to walk in...

...I knew that!

Mahalo,

Lynn Vasquez

[Leo Lakio]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

As long as we take a "not my problem" attitude, there will be no solution. It's an unpopular issue, so no politician is willing to risk the wrath of their monied supporters to put real funding into education of the young (to guarantee an improved future), or into treatment of the ill (as opposed to just locking them up, or hoping they'll die in a back alley, out of our sight.)

Anyone willing to put the money behind effective programs can no longer get elected, because we as taxpayers chant "fix this, fix this, but don't get anywhere near MY money to do so!" And that's the same whether we have a little money or a lot.

We've reached the point as a society that we will never cure the disease (as it were), we can only treat the symptoms now and lessen the suffering. Give money to good charities, donate clothing and household goods, volunteer your time. Whining won't get anyone off the streets, or get them the care they sorely need.

And don't say that they need to take care of themselves; each of "us" is only a small step away from each of "them." We are responsible for each other - that's the price of admission to this life.

[1stwahine]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

And don't say that they need to take care of themselves; each of "us" is only a small step away from each of "them." We are responsible for each other - that's the price of admission to this life.

...Exacto mundo Leo Lakio!

Aloha,

Lynn Vasquez

[kimo55]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

"Exacto mundo"

wow. I didn't know you spoke...
oh wait:
"Vasquez"

uh yeeeaaaa. ok! right.

[toeknee]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

The most logical way to make housing more available and more affordable is to build more of it.

Build, build, build more condos, houses and apartments. That is how you make housing more available (duh), which in turns keeps prices lower than they would be otherwise.

But every time someone wants to build, legions of well-meaning naysayers come out to protest. If any of those folks are reading this, I'd like to know, how would you solve the housing problem without building more homes?

Some will say, "Well, obviously, wages need to be higher." That's easy to say (actually, quite simplistic) for someone who doesn't own or manage a small business. So instead of just throwing out the usual easy solutions, try to imagine the unintended effect each one might have.

Not necessarily. As long home prices are being driven by people moving in from outside your area, no amount of building will reduce prices. Those building subdivisions and condos will not lower their prices until the demand shrinks, and with a seemingly endless supply of Californians cashing out on their overpriced homes, flush with cash, it may take awhile for prices to stablize and for supply and demand to find balance. With demand so high, developers have no incentive to make any of their units affordable. Those who would say that simply raising wages will solve the problem are being a bit short sighted, too. Since those home prices are being driven by people coming in from outside with cash to burn, there is no way wages could rise as fast as home prices.
So everyone will have to pitch in to solve the problem. Government will have to assess fees and require that a percentage of each development be devoted to workforce housing, affordable by those earning, say, 80-120 percent of area median income. Enployers who need workers at affordable wages should pitch in by subsidizing a portion of their workers' housing costs. Politicians should encourage development near employment centers so that folks could spend less on gas and devote more to housing. It will take a combination of creative approaches. Some may fail. But if nothing is done, the crisis of homeless, working families will continue to grow.

[Miulang]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

Not necessarily. As long home prices are being driven by people moving in from outside your area, no amount of building will reduce prices. Those building subdivisions and condos will not lower their prices until the demand shrinks, and with a seemingly endless supply of Californians cashing out on their overpriced homes, flush with cash, it may take awhile for prices to stablize and for supply and demand to find balance. With demand so high, developers have no incentive to make any of their units affordable. Those who would say that simply raising wages will solve the problem are being a bit short sighted, too. Since those home prices are being driven by people coming in from outside with cash to burn, there is no way wages could rise as fast as home prices.
.

Exactamundo. One thing Maui is looking at (and it may be on the bleeding edge of this thinking) is that, like with UH residency requirements for instate tuition, the County is thinking of imposing a rule that anyone who wants to buy into "afforable" housing has to prove that they have resided on Maui for 5 years. This will be important as the hotels on Maui cater to upscale tourists who obviously need people working in the service sector to make their stays more enjoyable; what Maui needs is housing for people who work in the service sector. Unfortunately, in order to do that, they have to promise that a certain percentage of the developer's housing can be at market rate (so the developer can still make a profit), which means rich folks from the Mainland buying up property for investment. So if they put the County residency requirement on sales, and then tax the beejeesus out of investment property, maybe there will eventually be enough resources to provide housing for the workers.

Miulang

P.S. There is one solution to the real estate speculation: hope and pray that the stock market and economy strengthen so that the stock market starts looking more lucrative to investors than real estate does.

[alohacandy]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

This Saturday ~ I'll be giving a bunch of clothes, shoes and misc. items to Sharon Black on the corner of Nuuanu and Hotel Street at 10:00 a.m. Anyone care to join me?

Auntie Lynn...just to clarify this...the Kau Kau Wagon feeds the homeless at the corner of Bethel and Hotel Streets at Gateway Park (where I met you at Thanksgiving) but we normally don't get there until sometime between 1:30 and 2:00 p.m. on Saturdays. We always appreciate donations of clothing, shoes, toiletries, towels, etc. We are always in need of volunteers to help us give out the food as well.....sometimes there are just 3 or 4 of us ... and the numbers of homeless that we feed are increasing every week so the more volunteers the better. It seems that we have been feeding more children and elderly than ever before in the past couple of months. Rumor has it that HPD has cracked down on the volunteers who give out food at other locations and don't have Health Dept. permits (just like they "cracked down" on us) and so some meal sites have closed down because of this...thereby sending even more in our direction. Sad but true.
Anyway....
See you this weekend!

[Creative-1]

Re: What can we do to help the homeless?

As someone who was the head of the Hawaii Hunger Project, Ending Hunger Hawaii, and a director of Small Business Hawaii, I might have a unique vantage point on the issue of homelessness.

From my point of view, homelessness is largely the result of well-intentioned government programs. The actions of our state and county governments often have the opposite effect than what was intended.

In an effort to help employees, government has imposed the most costly mandates and regulations in the nation. This leaves less money for employers to pay their staff.

Our highest-in-the country workers compensation costs adds $30,000 to the cost of building the average house.

These costs create a negative business climate that deters mainland companies from opening up shop here. That keeps many well-paying jobs out of the state.

To help the disadvantaged, we’ve created the highest tax rates in the country to fund social programs. This means our underpaid citizens pay thousands more in taxes than the national average.

We believe the rich pay most of the taxes, but we have the most regressive taxes in the country. Those fresh out of high school and working at Longs don’t know they’re already in the top tax bracket.

Our General Excise Tax seems low, but two-thirds of it gets hidden in the high shelf price we pay. It’s equivalent to an 18% sales tax in California.

Our government supports “working men and women,” but only if you’re in government unions. The state takes more from the general populace to benefit the public union members.

So that every public school child gets the same education, we’ve created the only statewide school system in the nation. This has resulted in mediocrity and low standards.

The end result: we’ve impoverished our own citizens. We make them work multiple jobs and live paycheck to paycheck. It doesn’t take much, in these circumstances for some to become homeless.

Until the public wakes up and stops voting for those who only offer more of the same, we are doomed to repeat our mistakes.

The legislature will do much to address homelessness this term. They’ll create programs, impose regulations and mandates, and raise taxes. A year from now, homelessness will be worse than it is now.