The Buckingham Herald Tribblog

The men have largely been sleeping under the protection of the pavilion near N. George Mason Drive. They can be found on some mornings sleeping on the table tops or picnic benches, with backpacks or bedrolls nearby. Some women walking in or near the park early in the morning have expressed worry about having the men there.

On Friday Sept. 26, Arlington Police officer J. Joy said that he had been in the park to check for homeless men, looking around the amphitheatre, especially under the deck and stairs at the back of the structure. He found no one there, he said, but he found one person in the pavilion.

“We are trying to take care of this problem,” Ofr. Joy said. He, along with officer C. Lutz and others, was in the Lubber Run amphitheatre parking lot, stopping pedestrians (including this reporter) to see if people knew of other locations in the park to check.

According to the police, it is against county code for anyone, homeless or not, to be in the park after hours. Under the county’s “Park Safe” program, the first violation results in a warning, and the second violation bans the person from county parks, a violation he or she may appeal. Third violations can mean arrest for trespassing; that carries a court summons and a fine, generally.

“Only if they show no regard for the officer’s direction of leaving are they taken into a full custodial arrest,” wrote Det. Crystal Nosal in an email. She is the police public information officer.

Phone calls for this story were the first A-SPAN’s Leonard Chari had heard of the homeless men in Lubber Run Park.

In fact, Lubber Run is not even a park that his outreach workers normally patrol. He said nearby residents normally call him if they see homeless men in parks.

“If nobody complains…they go in when no one notices,” Mr. Chari said. “In this instance we haven’t gotten any information.” Mr. Chari is the director of A-SPAN’s Opportunity Place, a program that helps homeless people gain stable incomes and housing.

Labels: aspan, homeless, lubber run park, Police

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 5:00 AM 0 comments

The people were walking to the church to receive a free evening meal, a program the church has offered for years, and in a letter-to-the-editor of the HeraldTrib (Feb. 28), Ms. Bukar said she applauded that ideal, but also heard other stories of panhandling and crime. In the letter she wondered what could be done to get the people who were looking for a meal to respect property rights.

The letter produced quite a bit of commentary including a note from the Buckingham Community Civic Association President Pat Hope who suggested a meeting between police, the church and the Chatham.

The church provides the service “to help those who need help,” said Associate Pastor Lynn Carter at yesterday afternoon’s meeting. Nancy Bukar, Pat Hope, Arlington Police Ofr. Mike Lutz and the Chatham’s community manager Fred Shirley met with Ms. Carter around The Chatham’s conference table in their community room.

“We just have it basically for fellowship, for whoever wants to come,” said Ms. Carter who coordinates the meals program. It draws between 30 and 100 people from all sorts of backgrounds, she said. Some are homeless, but many are not. Although the dinner is most full in the winter when people are more likely out of work, Ms. Carter said, fewer people trespass or panhandle in the winter, Mr. Shirley said.

Some diners live in the Chatham and Arlington Oaks Condominium. Others are people who might not have family or just do not want to eat alone.

When she is at the dinner, she tells the diners--up to three times an evening in English and Spanish--to respect private property, to stay on the sidewalks.

“I can say that to them,” Ms. Carter said. “There’s nothing I can do.”

Still, that had not stopped her from going outside on one occasion to direct people, she said. She said the church has signs reinforcing what she says.

The rest of the group said they understood.

“From what it sounds like, you’re doing all you can do,” Ofr. Lutz said.

He asked Ms. Bukar and Mr. Shirley what they thought the Chatham could do, as well. He asked if the condominium had considered fences or plantings that would keep people off the property.

Mr. Shirley said some of the people might need to see no trespassing signs on Chatham property. It could be that “they don’t know that they’re doing anything wrong,” he said. But signs could pose a problem as Chatham residents and Arlington Oaks residents use each other’s property on a regular basis. Then there’s the cost of the fencing and plantings.

For his part Ofr. Lutz said he has started to “put my head” into the dining room of the church to be a little more visible in the community. Since the people congregate around dinner time, Ofr. Lutz said his community policing unit could step up enforcement at that time. He said the problem will be solved putting together numerous small pieces of the puzzle.

"I think it's probably about enforcement," Pat Hope said, steady enforcement supporting both the church and The Chatham.

Labels: assembly of god, Chatham, homeless

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 10:05 AM 0 comments

First of all, I really appreciate the information you provide about the community - it's vital and interesting. Thank you.

Recently, a situation has come to my attention in this neighborhood that I want to bring to your attention, as I am not sure how to handle it.

As you may recall, I live in the Chatham. I have been dog-sitting for friends since last Monday, and therefore am out with the dog around 5 p.m. to walk her. Since having the dog on these walks, I have noticed a number of people, all men, traipsing through the Chatham parking lot in the back around this hour, walking across Arlington Oaks property and even walking on the sidewalk in front of the Chatham (inside the boundary line) to get to the church on the corner of Pershing and the Route 50 service road, the Arlington Assembly of God.

The purpose of their travels is to obtain food - the church provides food for the homeless. While I applaud the efforts of the church to serve the community, I do have concerns about how those who obtain these free meals conduct themselves in our neighborhood. And I have heard some anecdotal stories to that effect - someone being asked for money in our parking lot, cars being broken into, human waste found on the premises, people living and hiding in the large pine trees on Route 50 (right in front of the church) and the assorted beer cans and bottles I have seen dotting this area.

I spoke with our property manager about this (and he is quite good at what he does) and he informed me that he has approached the leadership of the church twice about this problem, and was basically told that because the church does not control these people, there is nothing they can do about it, and that they would continue in the same vein. Basically, he said "too bad." Not very neighborly.

I had a couple of questions after hearing this - why can't the church make an announcement at these free meal opportunities and ask those to whom they provide service to please respect the neighborhood and not trespass on private property? Does the church provide any other social services to help these people and thereby stave off other bad behavior? And, as a neighbor, shouldn't they try and make the area comfortable and safe for all the residents?

I'm frustrated and at a loss here, but I have felt uncomfortable more than a few times when out and about at this hour. Any thoughts you can provide on the situation would be much appreciated.

Thanks,

Nancy Bukar

Labels: church, homeless, letter

// posted by Steve Thurston @ 1:45 PM 9 comments