Denver Joins List Of Cities Struggling With Homeless Camps

DENVER (AP) - People camping near Denver's homeless shelters packed up their belongings Tuesday as city workers started removing bags, tarps, shopping carts and other items left on sidewalks.

The Mile High City is another fast-growing metropolis struggling with what to do about homeless camps as affordable housing becomes scarcer. Construction cranes dot the skyline, but people drawn to Denver's outdoor, yet urban lifestyle are willing to pay rising rents.

The homeless camps in March (credit: CBS)

The city has spent months trying to urge the campers on the edge of downtown near the Coors Field baseball stadium to move into shelters and get rid of makeshift structures that officials say pose a health hazard. They posted notice of the crackdown Monday.

The area has long been a hub for homelessness, with the city's two shelters located there, but the neighborhood is changing. More apartments are going up, and it is becoming increasingly popular for bars and restaurants.

PHOTO GALLERY: City Of Denver Takes Action Against Homeless Camp

Some of the campers who remained until Tuesday said they would move somewhere else rather than sleep in a crowded shelter. While more shelter beds are available, homeless advocates say not everyone should be forced to stay in them. Shirley Cherrysseed said the city should set aside a designated area for homeless people to camp.

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"It is just stupid. They are being unreasonable," she said before the cleanup started.

A crowded shelter may not be a good place for people with mental illness and others don't want to leave their partners or dogs, said Cathy Alderman, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless.

Officials stressed that only things, not people, are being removed from the area. Until recently, it was lined with many more camps, some with tarps tied to trees for shelter.

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Police accompanied the city crews clearing the sidewalks. A half-dozen protesters shouted from across a busy street, accusing the workers of stealing, but no one interfered with the cleanup.

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Crews have been cleaning the area three times a week, finding human waste, needles and discarded food, and the situation is nearing a crisis, city spokeswoman Julie Smith said.

"This unsafe, unhealthy, unsanitary and inhumane situation must be addressed," she said.

The move comes a week after crews in San Francisco cleared out a homeless camp under a freeway overpass that city officials had declared a health hazard. In Seattle, city-sanctioned homeless encampments have opened and parking lots are available where people living in RVs and cars can park and have access to toilets and social services.

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Denver native Josh Lampkin, who helps clean up trash near the homeless camps, said he ended up living on the streets after being released from prison.

He said he likes the energy from a downtown that has transformed into a hotspot of bars and clubs, but he wonders if there is room for those whose lives don't go smoothly.

"It's a city. People go through things. That's life," he said.

- By COLLEEN SLEVIN, AP Writer