The rise of shantytowns?

My friends in Seattle area recently showed me terrific work they are doing to turn troubled neighborhoods around. Sustainable Ballard and White Avenue come to mind. Last month I visited Tacoma (see my February 4 blog "Tacoma's Moon Shot"). I saw equally impressive things going on there. Then I was shown a weekend food lineup area for homeless under an overpass. Fences control access. It seems clean. But under an overpass?

I thought of the depression. Consider Seattle's shantytown of the 1930s. see Hooverville in the 1930s

It raises the whole issue of the homeless as I've written before (February 22, "Pain and Wasting in Vancouver").

Are shantytowns getting worse in this worsening economy?

There is an excellent New York times article about this very problem called North American Shantytowns. read New York Times article


With all the progress in places like Seattle we should not forget the horrors of the Great Depression.

This must not happen again.

My colleague Severin Sorensen has put out an excellent blog and book on this topic called Economic Misery and Crime Waves. see Sorensen's blog

We must not let this happen again.

Tacoma's Moon Shot - Aiming to cut crime 50% in 14 months

You got to give the mayor in Tacoma, Washington credit for his goal to cut crime 50% within 14 months. Not many public officials are bold enough to make such claims. I remember a former Vancouver BC Police Chief making similar claims a decade ago. Note the word FORMER! (It didn't work out).

Neither is it working out in Tacoma. A year into their extensive program, crime is down only 5% by some accounts - by other accounts it is up slightly. But is that really a "failure" because it didn't reach some early, and perhaps naive, goals? After all, they collected 1000 tons of refuse, litter and debris from city streets. They cleaned up properties. More folks are involved in community efforts than before. Those are all laudable successes. And if crime is down only 5%, at least it is down! Maybe their goal should be to double that for next year.

Through the law of doubling, especially if Tacoma gets skilled at sustaining their work, they may very well reach 50% within 2 years. Not bad if it holds. ESPECIALLY during a time of economic collapse. Check out the newsclip on the program.

See the Tribune Story