The Briefing Room
State Chapters => State Politics/Government => Topic started by: mountaineer on March 27, 2024, 06:33:09 pm
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Then: a homeless encampment near the BU Bridge. Now: Hundreds and hundreds of jagged rocks.
State officials say it’s to fight erosion, but advocates for homeless people aren’t so sure.
By Spencer Buell, The Boston Globe
updated on March 27, 2024 | 11:27 AMCAMBRIDGE — For years, collections of tents sprung up on a strip of land near the Boston University Bridge along the Charles River. Strewn with tarps, camping supplies, garbage, propane tanks, and needles, the small patch of riverbank was home to about a dozen people at any given moment.
In October, a fire spread rapidly in the campsite, igniting the gas tanks and sending up a thick cloud of black smoke that could be seen on either side of the river. Traffic was shut for hours. No one was hurt, but 10 people were displaced, and in the aftermath, fire officials said damage to the land was extensive.
Five months later, there are no more tents, no more people; instead the sloping embankment is covered with hundreds of pointy rocks and boulders that make it even more uncomfortable to sleep on the ground.
The state said the change is intended to help fight erosion and protect the bridge. But advocates for the homeless see the jagged additions to the terrain, which cover nearly every square foot of ground with sharp edges, as a not-so-subtle attempt to discourage people from sleeping there. ...
Boston.com (https://www.boston.com/news/the-boston-globe/2024/03/27/then-a-homeless-encampment-near-the-bu-bridge-now-hundreds-and-hundreds-of-jagged-rocks/)
(https://bdc2020.o0bc.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/I52SPYNDZLBIAFSXA7HY5FC2KM-65fb155d5d73b-768x432.jpg?width=800)
blij26
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Bravo, indeed! It's amazing that no one was hurt, but it's a good thing that a "fire" was put under the tail of some movers and shakers to address the problem.
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Not everyone in Mass is a commie.
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Officials in cities near me continue to dither about the "encampments," trying to do everything they can to accommodate the trespassers, no matter the risk to citizens. Maybe they should check out this solution.
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That is a jagged little pill for these so-called "Homeless advocats" to swallow. Isn't it ironic.