Inhumane and wrong. That’s how advocates for the homeless characterize last month’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing municipalities to fine, ticket or arrest people sleeping outside in public places.
“We believe the impetus is to force people without homes out of public spaces,” Beth Nabors, executive director of Palatine-based Journeys|The Road Home wrote in an email.
To that end, some municipalities have removed traditional park benches and replaced them with benches that have two or three individual seats to prevent a person from lying down, according to Nabors.
“It sends the message that pretty parks and community buildings are only for the rich,” added Nabors, whose organization provides shelter and services to the homeless. “It lets the residents know that their village’s ‘branding’ is more important than human life.”
In its ruling in the case of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson, the Supreme Court found municipalities do not violate the Eighth Amendment’s “cruel and unusual punishment” prohibition by enforcing prohibitions against homeless people camping in public places, even when adequate shelter is unavailable.
Nabors argues that such regulations place more obstacles on people trying to navigate a path out of homelessness, and she fears the high court’s ruling will herald a return to days when police officers picked up someone sleeping in a park, drove them to the village limits and deposited them.
“We have come a long way from that, but I see that mentality returning with this ruling,” she said. “What happened to the days where we took care of our neighbors and we all came together to build people up?”
Arlington Heights responds
Arlington Heights officials are reviewing the Supreme Court’s decision, Village Manager Randall Recklaus said via email.
In the past, police were called about people living in the parking garage located below the Arlington Town Square shopping center. In response, the village introduced an ordinance prohibiting “the use of village parking facilities for activities other than parking a vehicle or walking to and from that vehicle,” Recklaus wrote, adding that officers issue citations “when appropriate.”
“While enforcement of ordinances is important, it is only one part of an overall strategy, which includes support for organizations that provide housing to individuals in need, the use of emergency assistance funds to help individuals and families at risk of becoming homeless, and finding creative ways to create more attainable housing in our region,” he added.
In 2020, Arlington Heights adopted a housing ordinance requiring residential developers to include affordable units that “shall remain affordable in perpetuity.” It is one of only seven suburbs to do so, Recklaus said.
Elgin responds
The ruling “has no immediate impact on the city’s outreach work with persons sleeping and camping in public spaces,” according to Elgin City Manager Richard G. Kozal. He estimates the city’s homeless population at about 100, with up to 60 residing on the west bank of the Fox River near the Metra railroad tracks.
A homeless encampment along the Fox River in Elgin has up to 60 residents.
Daily Herald File Photo, 2018
The city’s outreach includes funding emergency warming shelters, which are open from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Dec. 1 through March 31, Kozal wrote in an email. Social service and faith-based organizations provide meals and other necessities, he added.
The city council last year allocated nearly $1 million for the establishment of temporary individual shelters for those living along the river, said Kozal. Once a suitable building or a location for those shelters has been identified, and a service provider to manage the facility has been secured, the city will begin relocating the persons camping near the Fox, he said.
However, Kozal acknowledges more funding will be needed to pay a provider to manage the shelters.
A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling regarding homeless people “has no immediate impact on the city’s outreach work with persons sleeping and camping in public spaces,” said Elgin City Manager Richard G. Kozal.
Rick West/[email protected], 2020
Like Arlington Heights, Elgin officials use ordinance enforcement to prevent people from using city parking decks for any activity other than parking or retrieving a vehicle. The city also recently adopted ordinances restricting access to The Edward Schock Centre of Elgin to patrons using the amenities or event spaces.
Elgin leads Kane County in number of affordable housing units, said Kozal, but availability alone “will not resolve the needs of persons experiencing homelessness to obtain jobs, substance abuse treatment or mental health care.”
Naperville responds
City Attorney Mike DiSanto said Naperville officials have taken the SCOTUS decision “under advisement.”
To date, the city’s homeless encampment consists of one resident: Scott Huber. He has lived on Naperville streets for more than two decades as part of a self-proclaimed protest denouncing perceived injustices by city officials he blames for the loss of his home, business and personal property.
Scott Huber has been living on corner of Naper Boulevard and Ogden Avenue in Naperville.
Brian Hill/[email protected]
In October 2009, the city adopted an ordinance prohibiting camping, sleeping or storing personal property “on the public ways” in its downtown area. A month later, Huber was cited for violating that ordinance, fined $100 plus court costs and issued a permanent injunction against violating the ordinance.
Huber subsequently took his protest to other areas of the city, most recently at Ogden Avenue and Naper Boulevard.
Naperville’s Scott Huber, who lives on the corner of Naper Boulevard and Ogden Avenue, says he is not homeless. He describes himself as a protester against perceived injustices by city officials.
Brian Hill/[email protected]
Describing himself not as homeless but as a protester, Huber said he doesn’t believe the Supreme Court ruling affects him. He said he owns a home in the Philippines and is not homeless.
But he expressed concern for how it would affect others living on the streets and said cities should make a “reasonable effort” to offer shelter elsewhere.
According to DiSanto, Naperville has “prioritized maintaining and increasing affordable housing.” He points to the potential sale of city property at 103rd Street and Route 59 as a site for affordable housing for seniors and people with developmental disabilities.
For his part, Huber blames corporate America and politicians for the nation’s homeless problem and said the country should work on addressing its “root causes.”
“What they (the ‘elite establishment’) is doing is shoving it all under the rug, making (the homeless) look like hapless bums,” he said.
· Daily Herald staff writer Alicia Fabbre contributed to this report.