In the wake of the recent trestle fire (whose suspicious cause is still being investigated) in the area of the Parkway where illegal homeless camping and the related fires, habitat destruction, and crime has been a serious issue for several years, it is a good reminder to local government to protect public space and that is an important priority (second of seven) of this column.
Seven Big Lessons
for Local Governments
By OTIS WHITE
...Lesson 2: Protect the order of public spaces.
There are times in our past when you look back and wonder, “What were we thinking?” The early 1960s to the 1990s — when we lost control of our streets, parks and urban plazas — was one of those head-shaking eras. In the 1990s, some courageous mayors and police chiefs began reclaiming our urban spaces. Most notable was Rudolph Giuliani, who started by busting the squeegee men and ended up making New York safe again for decent people. ...
We still face challenges in preserving public order. One is keeping the crime rate down (it’s creeping up in most cities); another is dealing effectively with the homeless — who, while not criminals, disrupt public spaces. As this column says, cities have tried coddling the homeless and criminalizing them, only to watch the problem grow worse. But there are approaches that work, and they begin by getting homeless people out of our parks and off our sidewalks and into housing. This new approach is humane, effective and, in the long run, far less expensive than surrendering our urban spaces.
