Last night - June 3, 2013 - the Albany City Council unanimously reaffirmed its longstanding policy that the Albany Waterfront Park (the "Bulb") should eventually be managed, as the Albany Beach is managed, by state or regional park authorities for the benefit of all.
This was not a surprise to most observers - not because of any 'insider' knowledge or 'backroom deals', but because those who follow Albany issues know this has been a civic goal for over two decades. All that is new is the fresh focus and determination to finally make it happen.
Among the many speakers on this issue were some homeless advocates and Bulb campers. They expressed concern that the City's resumption of enforcement of its anti-camping ordinance, planned for October, does not allow enough time for the campers to relocate, and that the $32,000 allocated to help them with the transition will be inadequate.
I share their concerns (although I do not share the perspective advanced by some that homeless people have a "right" to camp in the park and other public places). For well-organized people, five or six months is ample time to secure alternative living arrangements. But for the mentally ill, addicted, and/or impoverished, there are few housing alternatives available, and the whole prospect may be overwhelming.
The campers need our help. The City's program will be substantial, but private and nonprofit efforts may be needed too. One speaker last night illustrated this point in a painfully moving way. She explained that she is terminally ill, has three dogs, and is terrified of having to move from her tent on the Bulb to a dangerous neighborhood.
It is highly unlikely that any program of public benefits will provide this camper with a home in a safe neighborhood where a person can keep three dogs. After all, many working families live in those 'dangerous' neighborhoods, and pay the taxes that help support the indigent. And while a single dog might be viewed as crucial emotional support, three dogs is an expensive luxury, one that would be unaffordable to many working people.
We have a choice. We can condemn this woman for making poor life choices that limit her options, and leave her to face the consequences of those choices on her own. Or, we can recognize her as a fellow fallible human being in difficult circumstances, who has made her mistakes but who has also contributed to our community (for example, she cooks for others on the Bulb, and helped rescue birds after the oil spill).
Taking the latter approach, we can recognize that although public funds may not be available to serve her special needs, our community can open its hearts - and its wallets - to find a way to keep her with her beloved canine companions in a place where she feels safe, preferably here in Albany where she is a valued and respected member of our community.
Helping the campers make a satisfactory transition to housing designed for human habitation will not be easy, as this example illustrates. But it is not impossible if we open our hearts and overcome our unhelpful attitudes. We must get past the punitive attitude that the campers deserve their own misfortunes. We must also overcome the militant and unrealistic attitude that the campers have a 'right' to remain encamped in the park until society is prepared to hand each of them the keys to housing in a 'safe' neighborhood, where they can keep multiple dogs and otherwise live just as they do in their encampments.
Hopefully, last night's hearing gave everyone the comfort that all have been 'heard' on Albany Waterfront Park issues, and we can soon begin to come together as a community for realistic solutions that will provide tangible help to the campers over the coming summer.
Nobody wants to see people evicted from their homes. So let's make sure that by October, every camper has had the opportunity to transition to a better living arrangement, even if such living arrangements require special help that government may not be able to provide. Albany is full of warmhearted and generous people, and I believe we can and will go the extra mile to take compassionate action for the campers, without impeding progress towards a safe and healthy waterfront park for all to enjoy.
