Publication Date: Friday, January 30, 2004
Homelessness rivals traffic as city's biggest problem
Homelessness rivals traffic as city's biggest problem
(January 30, 2004) City auditor releases survey of community's likes, dislikes
by Bill D'Agostino
Homelessness is the second biggest problem Palo Alto faces, trailing only ubiquitous traffic, according to a survey of residents released this week.
The survey -- mailed in October/November by the city auditor-- listed 10 issues, and asked respondents to rank them as a "major problem," "minor problem," "moderate problem," or "not a problem."
Of the 557 respondents, 20 percent felt that "traffic congestion" was a major problem, while 17 percent felt that "homelessness" was No. 1.
Those were followed by "taxes" (16 percent), "too much growth" (12 percent), "noise" (8 percent), and "drugs" (7 percent).
"Graffiti" (1 percent) and "Crime" (2 percent) were the problems least often pegged as a "major problem."
"The people are tired of the homeless problem, and the homeless are tired of the homeless problem," exclaimed Victor Frost, who can frequently be seen panhandling outside of Whole Foods.
Whether the unexpectedly-strong concern about the homeless reflects Palo Alto's social consciousness or residents' frustration at not being able to shop downtown without getting harassed by scruffy panhandlers was unclear.
The survey did not ask the 1,200 random households it polled to explain their votes.
Residents sipping hot coffee on a bench near downtown agreed homelessness was a big problem for Palo Alto on Thursday morning.
"You can't go to Whole Foods without someone asking you for money," Old Palo Alto resident Cherry Smith said. But, she added, showing sympathy, "where are they going to go?"
Sitting next to Smith, Amy Carlow agreed with her friend's assessment, then wondered if all the downtown beggars were really living on the streets, since many aren't very smelly.
"If you're really homeless, you haven't taken a shower in a month," Carlow pointed out.
Both women agreed that there were "very few" real homeless people in Palo Alto.
Joining the two, Carissa Stonebreaker, a Downtown North resident, said she felt that a lack of dog parks was the biggest problem in the city. Standing patiently at her side, Stonebreaker's afghan dog, Kashmir, seemed to be in silent agreement.
The Opportunity Center, which will include homeless services and 89 units of extremely affordable housing, received City Council approval last year, and will break ground on May 5. The center's board is also busy raising $8 million in grants this year.
Bill D'Agostino can be e-mailed at bdagostino@paweekly.com
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