Quote:
Originally Posted by urban_planner
Hamilton biggest problem and it has been forever isn't the street people. It's the everyone shits all over downtown and for whatever reason thinks this homelessness problem is strictly a Hamilton issue. Get over it. It's like this everywhere. I'm not living in a town with 1000 people and guess what we have a homeless guy living under a bridge. Norfork County OPP is daily getting calls in Simcoe for homeless people putting up tents where ever they feel like it.
Don't go to the east part of Downtown London. It's much worse than what I've seen Downtown Hamilton.
I'm so sick of hearing it. Get over it, it's never going away.
I really don't understand why Hamiltonians obsess over it and obsesse over being so negative.
|
There is a North America-wide opioid crisis. There is also a Canada-wide (at least) housing crisis. The "It's everywhere!" argument may be true, and we can debate about which cities have it better or worse, but common problems do not mean that this is not a massive existential threat for downtown Hamilton. It is not a competition. A number of places can be in trouble at the same time.
How many US cities saw a more-or-less simultaneous hollowing out and flight to the suburbs in recent decades?
Cities to this point have more or less been left to fend for themselves on these types of matters. They are worth acknowledging.
All of this said, I can semi-buy the "It's everywhere!" (and thus we can't do much about it on an individual basis) argument. What I can't buy are the denials that this is a massive issue and impediment to the growth of downtown. The tax court has left. Santa has left. Others can leave. There is a big, big, big issue.
Threaded Mode