Enjoined by the courts from criminalizing panhandling, the city on Tuesday announced the upcoming rollout of an anti-poverty program that puts panhandlers to work.
The Hope Works initiative, which City Manager Bill Burrough told the Hot Springs Board of Directors the city and Jackson House expect to start by the end of the month, will offer the homeless and panhandlers minimum wage to pick up litter from roadways and public areas.
Modeled after a program that began in Albuquerque, N.M., that's since been adopted by numerous cities, Hope Works uses employment to build relationships that can steer participants to resources such as substance abuse treatment and mental health services.
"That's really the core of the program," Burrough told the board, explaining that the program's adoption proceeded from the poverty summit the city held in June to promote better coordination among charities and nonsecular groups serving the poor. "It's to help these individuals link to other support services that are offered by either local churches or nonprofits. Hope Works is another tool to help impact the citizens with the services they need while offering them the opportunity to achieve some type of employment and beautify the city."
Because the program involves litter abatement, Burrough said money set aside in the city's solid waste fund will pay for the litter crews. The city will also provide a vehicle, and Jackson House will staff and oversee the program. Jackson House provides emergency assistance to citizens of the community, according to the mission statement listed on informational forms it files annually with the Internal Revenue Service.
Executive Director Janie Smith said the nonprofit serves about 60,000 meals a year in addition to providing other assistance.
The city board adopted two anti-panhandling ordinances after the practice became prevalent near busy streets and intersections following a federal judge's invalidation of the state loitering statute. A lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas led to the board's repeal of a 2016 ordinance prohibiting pedestrians from soliciting money or other items from motorists.
U.S. District Judge Robert T. Dawson ruled in April that the ordinance the board adopted in December 2017 unduly burdened what courts have said is the constitutional right to beg. The ruling enjoined the city from enforcing the ordinance and required it to pay ACLU of Arkansas $30,702 in attorney fees.
A Facebook page created earlier this year urges people to lobby the city for prohibitions on begging in public. It features photos and videos of panhandlers and people confronting panhandlers. Andy Anderson, the page's creator, told the board Tuesday that an anti-poverty program won't curtail panhandling, explaining that most panhandlers he's talked to have no interest in working.
"Some of these individuals I have run across do have mental problems," he said. "The majority of them though are young individuals who are perfectly capable of working who have drug and alcohol programs. Multiple people have messaged me on Facebook about how they're being threatened in our marketplaces, downtown and on our street corners. You've got to do something."
Others shared similar sentiments during the public comment period of Tuesday's night's board meeting, recounting how they have been accosted and threatened by panhandlers while stopped at busy intersections, but some framed the problem as a societal failing instead of a character deficiency.
They encouraged kindness toward panhandlers, telling the board that many people in the city are one financial emergency away from finding themselves in reduced circumstances.
Smith said money paid to panhandlers would be better spent supporting social services providers.
"People who are giving them money are wasting their money," she said. "I think there's a better solution, like the one we're going to start where people work and earn money. There's a certain sense of pride you get from earning money. It's totally different from just standing there and hoping someone will give you something."
Smith said St. Luke's Episcopal Church's outreach program will focus on case management, including referring participants to services offered by other area nonprofits and faith-based groups.
"Just giving someone a job is not going to solve all their problems," Smith said. "You have to transition them from homelessness to a sense of self-worth, responsibility, working on a schedule and in a team environment."
Burrough told the board the program will operate three days a week, with participants working four to five hours a day and focusing on state and federal highways inside the city.
"We have litter crews who work on interior arterial streets or most of our heavily trafficked streets that aren't state highways," he said. "The city is full of state highways we don't have control over. This program will focus on those particular areas.
"Hopefully we'll be able to break this cycle of poverty by getting people connected into resources that can help them break the poverty chain. We can also beautify the city. We're very proud of this program."
Local on 10/03/2019