From the Civic Center Garage--an unpublished editorial sent to the D&C

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Submitted by Tom Malthaner, Catholic Worker, St. Joseph’s House of Hospitality on Tue, 2014-09-16 12:15

LETTER TO D&C OPINION PAGE 8-26-14

THE CLOSING OF THE POLICE GARAGE TO THE HOMELESS

Last Thursday night Sister Grace, from the House of Mercy, Rob Benazzi , on staff at St. Joseph’s House of Hospitality, and myself, a Catholic Worker at St. Joseph’s House, stayed overnight at the Civic Center (police) Garage. The management told us that as long as we are paying customers we could stay as long as we want. My purpose in staying was to experience one night and get an idea of what homeless persons go through, understanding that some stay for weeks and months. In talking to some of the old-timers who have stayed in the garage, one mentioned he stayed in the late 70’s and another in the 80’s. So the homeless have been using the garage as a shelter for almost 40 years. Under Article 17 of the New York State Constitution, Monroe County has a legal obligation to care for the needy. I am appalled and ashamed that, for so many years, the County has looked the other way and allowed the police garage to be a shelter. I am ashamed that I didn’t say anything about this situation before now. Staying in the garage was nasty. I got about 3 ½ hours of sleep - on the cement floor with a sleeping bag under me as a cushion. It was warm and I was concerned about car exhaust fumes throughout the night. The maintenance man ran the power cleaner most of the night. It was very loud and reminded me of a miniature street cleaner . He would go outside several times a night to get fresh air to counteract the fumes and the dust, but we were stuck inside. Finally, there is no bathroom in the garage. In the meetings with Mapco, the company managing the garage, one of their complaints was the smell of urine and feces. We have suggested several times to put a porta-potty in the garage as a simple solution, but the management refused. So going to the bathroom for myself and Sr. Grace was an embarrassing experience. In sum, I thought the overnight experience was dreadful and would not suggest it even to my worst enemy. I think now of the” works of mercy”, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless… Is this how we should shelter our brothers and sisters who happen for whatever reason to become homeless?

For the last 14 months the House of Mercy, St. Joseph’s House and other groups have been working on getting a building to house the homeless once the garage is closed off. It is disturbing that the County has not taken a leadership role and has not worked with the City to solve this problem. It appeared clear from the garage meetings that a building was needed in the center city where homeless persons congregate and that both the County and the City would have a big part to play in this effort, . with the County, needing to fund the purchase and operations of the shelter and the City to provide a variance to the zoning (since shelters are not allowed in center city).

I did read the editorial last Saturday written by Mike Hennessy from Open Door Mission. Mike said that Open Door had a lot of success by setting certain boundaries and requiring homeless person to accomplish certain goals in order to maintain their bed. Many were able to get their apartment through Department of Human Services (DHS) and those with addictions many were successful in their rehab program. I do want to say that the population in the garage is generally much more difficult to work with due to chronic addictions and mental health problems. Many of them would have neither the desire nor the ability to work with DHS or to get into a rehab program. I agree with Mike that we must address the root causes of homeless; however, the root causes (which include the steady increase in economic inequality, the continued high unemployment rates, the rental housing crisis, the decline of union under corporate-funded attack, and our country’s incredible mania for invading other countries, which produces homelessness both in the countries invaded and among a substantial number of returning US veterans) are not problems that can be fixed immediately. We can, in the mean time, provide immediate relief by providing a downtown shelter open to all, which has only the minimum rules necessary to ensure a safe sleeping environment.

The leadership of the County and the joint cooperation County and City is paramount to resolve this problem.

Sincerely,

Tom Malthaner

Catholic Worker, St. Joseph’s House of Hospitality