Posted on: Friday, August 23, 2002

Homeless evictions inflict social cost

By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward O'ahu Writer

WAIMANALO — The closing of a popular camp site at Waimanalo Beach Park next month means that dozens of homeless may lose contact with the only people willing to help them, experts say.

Social service agencies provide medical attention, psychiatric care and other services to the homeless on the beaches and in the parks where they live.

But the homeless in Waimanalo, some of whom have lived at the park for years, will be displaced when the city closes the campground for three months beginning Sept. 4.

Moving the homeless could cut off their medication supply, separate them from their social circle, and for the mentally ill, create paranoia, said Laura Thielen, coordinator for the Health Care for the Homeless Project, which has clients in Waimanalo.

"They have to meet new people and start the whole trust process over again," Thielen said.

The rapport that outreach counselors have built up over months could be destroyed, she said.

Without that trust, it's difficult persuading people to accept the help they need to overcome such problems as drug addiction and alcohol abuse that can lead to homelessness.

City officials said the campground will be closed so the area can be reconfigured, picnic tables added, grass planted and signs installed.

For years, perhaps decades, dozens of homeless have lived there, some illegally, others legitimately by getting a camping permit every week.

But escalating problems at the camp site, including indecent exposure, fights and domestic violence prompted the Waimanalo Neighborhood Board to call for a park closure and clean-up so the community can regain control of the area.

Outreach workers expect the Waimanalo homeless to move to another beach, choosing that lifestyle rather than shelters such as the Institute for Human Services in Honolulu.

Campers can still get permits to camp at Bellows Air Force Station on weekends and at Waimanalo Bay, Kualoa and Swanzy Beach parks in Windward O'ahu.

There are many reasons why the homeless would choose the beach over shelters, Thielen said.

Facilities such as IHS are crowded, and living with 200 people in a barracks-like facility is not appealing, she said.

"It makes a lot more sense to me to go out on the beach where it's much more quiet," Thielen said.

IHS also has no space for couples, who are separated unless they have a child, she said.

Weinberg Village in Waimanalo is often full and people are placed on a waiting list. But keeping in touch with some clients can be difficult, she said.

Rules are often a deterrent, especially for those with drug or alcohol abuse problems, because those facilities don't allow drinking or drug use, she said.

And people with mental illness have difficulty living with others and may leave or avoid shelters for that reason, Thielen said.

The Waikiki Health Center Care-A-Van serves 20 to 30 homeless people in Waimanalo, said Trish Glancey, Care-A-Van coordinator. A nurse practitioner who can prescribe medication and an outreach worker go to the beach park every week.

"Most people don't want to be homeless, because it's not the greatest lifestyle," Glancey said. "You're pretty much at the mercy of the weather, people are constantly harassing you, sometimes police are harassing you. There's a lot of violence that happens to the homeless community."

The Care-A-Van will try to determine where their clients will go once the camp site closes and offer them alternatives to the beach, she said.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com or 234-5266.