Can’t write Mission accomplished but I’m proud that I’m a part of instigating efforts that may see panhandlers off of  streets and into programs. Once again Contrasting what scaledown is about vs. my “the others” (we get sh*& done to make Windsor better for all). Efforts that  will see business owners have an outlet for frustrations they may have. I believe this program will reduce the amount dangerous situations where business owners confront panhandlers. Confrontations that at best are psychologically abusive and at worst can lead to violence.

Now I may be proud of my limited involvement which included about 20-30 hours researching the issue, about 10 hours blogging and debating the issue to learn about opposing views and educate some of the public. Few hours of meetings where I felt I did a good job of reconciling interests of the homeless coalition and current DWBIA leadership to facilitate a cooperative relationship between the two organizations.  As Abraham Lincoln once said “he has the right to criticise who has the heart to help”.

However, the heavy lifting was that of Joyce Zuk and her staff who deserve major kudo’s for creating a program designed specifically for Windsor.

At the end I’ve copied What the homeless coalition is proposing.

Now this is step one, this is what I’m hoping will address the concerns of conerned citizens such as Mr. Schnurr. COLLECTION OF DATA with which to base future decisions on.

I still am a fan of the other aspects of my program but do not have the particular data to prove that they are needed. I have to be open to the fact that further measures may not be supported by the data, or they may not be justified in full, only in part.

Now the only criticism left would be the stated concern of Unit 7 that this is a duplication of efforts by their group. I specifically raised this concern with Joyce, I was told that Unit 7 would need to come back into the umbrella of the homeless coalition for them to be a part of this. I still don’t understand why they are not a part of the homeless coalition, that alone is a concern that should be investigated.

Also this cooperative effort by both the homeless coalition and DWBIA could lead to so much more. I have to thank Unit 7 for educating me about the agreed upon need for several different shelters (women’s only, youth only) and the aspects of our disagreement on opening a wet shelter in Windsor. I raised this issue with Joyce Zuk who told me that she was working on creating a youth shelter. I opened the door to let her know that this cooperative effort on panhandling would be a great foundation on which to build and that I’d be willing to use that as a basis to approach the downtown business community for help for that effort (could be our designated charity of choice for events, hold a few fundraisers etc..).

I can only hope that Unit 7 encourages the people they deal with to participate and that we find out why their not working with the homeless coalition and what can be done to have them back into that umbrella again

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NEWS RELEASE

Downtown Windsor Street Outreach Program begins July 5, 2011

WINDSOR, ON - The Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association today announced the introduction of the Downtown Windsor Street Outreach Program (DWSOP), a pilot project and partnership with the Homeless Coalition of Windsor Essex County. The program was developed to respond to concerns from Downtown business owners regarding the proliferation of panhandling in the downtown core.

Staff from member agencies of the Homeless Coalition will participate in the pilot project and act as Outreach Workers, conducting regular patrols of the downtown core and regularly approaching individuals that appear to be homeless and/or who are panhandling. The Outreach Workers will provide information, resources and food vouchers to encourage individuals to seek assistance, and will conduct a brief survey with individuals on the street to gather non-identifying basic data on individuals panhandling in the city centre, such as age, gender, reason for panhandling etc.  The Homeless Coalition intends to review the data and produce a report that will be shared with the DWBIA and our member agencies to determine the need for an ongoing strategy.

Business owners concerned about a panhandling issue should call 519-256-1831. This hotline will be answered by staff at Family Service Windsor-Essex, a member agency of the Homeless Coalition. The business owner will be asked a few questions to determine the business location and the nature of the issue, and an outreach worker will be dispatched to meet with the panhandler. The Outreach Worker will offer the individual who is panhandling a variety of services and supports.

The Downtown Windsor Street Outreach Program (DWSOP) phone line will be answered from 9am-8pm Monday to Thursday, and 9am-5pm on Fridays. An after-hours answering service is available.

Homeless Coalition
The Homeless Coalition is a network of community agencies committed to eradicating homelessness in Windsor Essex County. The member agencies of the Coalition work with individuals who are homeless and/or who are at risk of homelessness.

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For more information:
Joyce Zuk, Chairperson, Homeless Coalition of Windsor Essex County
Direct 519-256-1831

Attachments :
Homeless Coalition Info
Panhandling Info Sheet