There are several success stories among people who "get help" in their homeless situation. I'm not familar with these people personally, so I'm not sure that they're mentally ill or not, but there are two low income housing complexes within 2 miles of my house. They aren't what you think either. One was a former nursing home that closed its doors and was almost demolished and probably would have become more apartments, but it was purchased and turned into low income housing for the homeless. Now, these aren't drunk staggering panhandlers, actually, they have jobs, they own cars, (the parking lot is full of them), and they have a home now. The neighborhood is also no worse off with them there than it was without them. In other words, it's just like any other apartment complex, I often forget that is is for low income housing. The other one is a former 5-story Ramada Inn hotel a bit farther north near Ben White that closed its doors. It was bought by a developer of these types of properties and renovated the building. I think rent there is about $300 if I remember correctly from the article about it. The top floor has a common area with a great view of downtown. Both of these facilties are a positive thing in my view. They haven't brought down the neighborhood or property taxes, (I can assure you of that!)
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My girlfriend has a dog named Kevin.
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