8
NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY JUNE 24, 2009
HOMELESS (CONTINUED FROM 7)
working as a volunteer at the LCS after she heard that the Salvation Army was closing its shelter and that the LCS was in need of help.
"It's one thing to see a homeless person on the street. It's another to see how they eat and sleep. It's an exercise in understanding," Mallula said. "It's definitely one of the more rewarding things I do with my time."
At a city commission meeting on June 16, Fire Chief Mark Bradford said the building the LCS used was not up to code for fire emergencies. The city already granted the LCS a Special Use Permit to allow them to house about 30 people in the overnight shelter. Since then, the shelter has had to accommodate more than twice as many people, violating the terms of its permit. Bradford said the LCS would either have to expand or find a larger space.
Mayor Robert Chestnut said that the city would provide specific recommendations for expansion, but that an amended permit must go through the planning process like any other land use request.
"I am hopeful the LCS resolves these issues quickly," Chestnut said. "I believe LCS, the City of Lawrence and the community want to provide the services in the community to serve those residents in need."
Chestnut said the city had made available almost $80,000 in stimulus money through the Community Development Block Grant Program to address the need for emergency housing.
Henderson said the money from the Community Development Block Grant Program would be sufficient to bring the LCS' current building up to code. He said the organization needed three estimates: plumbing work, new emergency sprinklers and an emergency exit.
Henderson said the shelter was most packed with Lawrence's homeless population at night. People who want to stay overnight must check in between 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. He said lines of people stood around the front entrance. Others got settled on their mattresses, which were placed close to one another on the tile floor of the building's small rooms.
A homeless man sleeps outside the Replay Lounge on the morning of June 19. The Lawrence Community Shelter has been housing 73 men and women each night since the Salvation Army emergency shelter closed on June 1. It typically houses 31.
At the June 16 city commission meeting, several downtown business owners told the mayor and city commissioners that the location of the shelter was hurting their businesses.
Chestnut said the Community Commission on Homelessness, put
"I definitely think that a new space needs to be found," Mallula said. "I think this whole idea of 'not in my backyard' is a little far-fetched. They need access to social services. It shows that there is a lot of fear and misunderstandings surrounding the homeless."
together by a previous commission to address homeless issues, recognized that the current location for the LCS was not ideal for a number of reasons, including its location. The CCH suggested constructing one emergency shelter that would house about 75 individuals.
The recommendation also supports a program designed to transition people from homelessness to housing. Henderson said the LCS had been trying to finalize a site to establish the new emergency shelter, but had not found a building with the proper facilities and necessary fire safety devices.
Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN
"They have an overall housing vision," Chestnut said. "We currently have pieces of the vision in place, but the community has a long way to go for this vision to become a reality."
Mallula said most of the people staying in the LCS building did not go to Massachusetts Street to panhandle. He said some had day work and others stayed in.
"Everybody is human. If you can't get past that, your ability to help them is limited. If you don't like it, help them find somewhere to live," Mallula said. "I think it's important to understand that nobody chooses to live that way."
Chestnut said the city must move quickly to locate a permanent site because of the stress the existing location was placing on downtown and surrounding neighborhoods. The challenge will be finding the right location, he said.
After finding and finalizing a site by agreeing to a price with the seller, the LCS has to start raising money to buy the site and make it a usable space for the programs the LCS has for the homeless.
"It all sounds so easy and it's not at all," Henderson said.
Edited by Jesse Rangel
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ENTERTAINMENT Author accuses "The View" co-host of stealing content BOSTON — The author of a health book has sued Elisabeth Hasselbeck, accusing the co-host of ABC's "The View" of plagiarism.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court in Massachusetts, alleges that Hasselback lifted "word for word" content from a book written by Susan Hassett, a self-published author on Cape Cod.
Hasselbeck's book, "The G-Free Diet: A Gluten-Free Survival Guide," has appeared in the past month on several best-seller lists.
Celiac disease is a digestive disorder associated with people who cannot digest gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley.
Hassett said in the lawsuit that she sent Hasselbeck a personal note and copy of her "Living With Celiac Disease" book as a courtesy after the television celebrity disclosed she had the illness last year.
Hassett said Hasselbeck's book "slavishly reproduces" lists and passages from her own work and includes inaccuracies about celiac disease that can be "misleading and dangerous" for people with the illness.
Associated Press
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