News/Commentary

Miami mulls plan to move homeless to an ISLAND housing a sewer plant after Trump sounds off

July 28, 2022 | | Print Article

A day after former President Donald Trump called for the homeless to be shuffled off to camps on the outskirts of America’s cities, a report emerged that Miami city officials are considering housing their homeless population in a camp by a sewage plant.

“Miami city commissioners on Thursday will discuss a list of five locations where the city could build a ‘transition zone’ that would include temporary shelters and access to social services for people living on the street,” the Miami Herald reported.

“According to a presentation that will be made at the meeting by the city’s department of human services, the concept resembles projects in other U.S. cities, in some cases with the help of nonprofit or religious groups.”

One of the proposed locations is Virginia Key, a barrier island that currently houses the Miami-Dade Water and Sewer wastewater treatment plant, in addition to several recreational sites. It’s considered “optimal” because it’s in a “secluded local,” and it’s “not close to residential buildings,”

The plan is the brainchild of Commissioner Joe Carollo, a tell-it-like-it-is Republican known for stirring controversy in Democrat-controlled Miami for his tough but reasonable proposals.

“He drew controversy when he sponsored an ordinance that banned encampments on public property and empowered police officers to arrest homeless people if they refused to be moved to a shelter. That ordinance passed,” according to the Herald.

“He defended his stance, arguing that residents were complaining about homeless people blocking sidewalks, littering and leaving urine and feces in public spaces. Carollo then further sponsored a resolution to create an ‘adopt-a-homeless program’ that would allow people he called ‘hypocrites’ to take people in from off the street.”

Notice how the Herald’s reporting sounds awfully biased against Carollo. Indeed, the piece doesn’t even include a quote from him, though it does include numerous quotes from opponents of his Virginia Key idea. To be fair, some of the reasons offered by the opponents seemed fair.

For instance, Sunny McLean, a co-founder of the Virginia Key Alliance advocacy group, said the proposal would tarnish all the efforts the group has made toward restoring the island.

“We are stunned that anyone is even proposing this location. It’s a popular outdoor recreation area for Miamians, families and tourists right next to a restored and environmentally protected lagoon and beach. Why would you put an encampment for homeless people in a remote area? It’s ill-conceived and inconsiderate of the work and millions of dollars invested in that place,” McLean said.

Vinson Richter, a member of the city’s Virginia Key Advisory Board, had a different reason for his opposition.

“Homeless people need to be treated like human beings, and putting them next to a sewage treatment camp in a natural area where there are no services nearby to get them back on their feet does not seem to be the best location. If they place them on Virginia Key, it’s out of sight, out of mind, and instead of temporary it could end up being forever,” the Herald quoted him as saying.

But that would be the point. That way the homeless would be off on their own instead of in the city interfering in the lives of the working class.

In fact, as noted by Trump during a speech in D.C. on Tuesday, the homeless are doing far more than just interfering in people’s lives.

“Days earlier, an Olympian in woman’s volleyball, great player, was attacked by a homeless man as she was walking down the street and brutally hit in the face with a metal club almost causing her death and very close to causing blindness,” he said.

“No civilized society turns over its public spaces to be dominated by the drug addicts or the homeless no matter what the reason may be. If liberals think it’s somehow compassionate, let them invite the homeless to camp in their backyards, soil their property, attack their families and use drugs where their children are trying to play. Let them try it. Let them try it.”

He then proceeded to propose a solution.

“Perhaps some people will not like hearing this, but the only way you’re going to remove the hundreds of thousands of people — and maybe, throughout our nation, millions of people we’re talking about — and help make our cities clean, safe and beautiful again is open up large parcels of inexpensive land in the outer reaches of the cities,” he said.

“Bring medical professionals including doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, drug rehab specialists, build permanent bathrooms and other facilities. Make them good. Make them hard but build them fast and create thousands and thousands of high quality tents which can be done in one day. One day. You have to move people out.”

Apparently, Carollo was paying attention …

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Vivek Saxena
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