Homeless on Kauai
left with no refugeThe mayor's decision to evict
"campers" has no proposals
for alternative shelters
LIHUE >> Mayor Bryan Baptiste's announcement that he will evict the homeless from county park campgrounds in mid-November -- using police officers to make arrests if need be -- has frustrated social service agencies and left the island's homeless wondering where to go.
Kauai is the only county in Hawaii without a homeless shelter. The county park campgrounds long have been considered the unofficial shelters.
"The parks were never intended as homeless shelters, but at least they have bathrooms and showers and social service agencies know where to bring them service," said Judy Lenthall, executive director of the Kauai Food Bank. "If they get thrown out of the parks, there's no place for them to go. Where are you going to put them? The cane fields?"
In an Oct. 17 announcement, Baptiste did not offer any county funds to build or operate a shelter or any county land for a new campsite.
"Anyone who has been to county parks in the last few months will agree that homelessness on Kauai has become a major issue, one that needs addressing," Baptiste's announcement said. "Kauai Police Department officials have responded to numerous incidents of illegal activity and harassment in the county parks involving transient populations. As a result, the community has communicated to county officials that it wants the parks cleared and cleaned."
The Police Department will issue citations to illegal campers after a 30-day grace period, the announcement said, and the department will be prepared in case arrests are necessary.
There is a limit of 60 days a year for permits to stay at county parks. Many homeless people living at the parks have exceeded that limit. Park rangers often turn a blind eye or issue after-the-fact permits on the spot.
The mayor said he intends to use the 60-day limit to evict the homeless from the parks.
The issue of the homeless living in the county's seven beach parks on Kauai never came up in last year's political campaign and has never previously been mentioned by Baptiste in public statements.
Similarly, when the County Council spent a day last fall setting priorities for their next two years, the topic of homeless people camping in the parks was never discussed.
"The first I heard of it was at our last monthly meeting with the mayor. He suddenly said it was his No. 2 priority. I don't know where it came from. It's not even an issue to our membership," said Chamber of Commerce President Mamo Cummings. "By the way, I asked him what his No. 1 priority is, and he said it's a secret."
Baptiste did not respond to a request for an interview. His office also did not respond to a request for police reports documenting any criminal activity by the homeless in the parks. In his press release, Baptiste claimed an increase in the amount of crime due to the homeless.
Baptiste's claims about the homeless in the parks simply is untrue, said Stephanie Fernandes, homeless and housing director for Kauai Economic Opportunities, a nonprofit social service agency.
"The police have never come to KEO complaining of any violence or theft in the camping areas. The only complaints I get are from the homeless campers who say local people come to the parks at night, get drunk and try to pick fights with them," she said.
The agency serves between 500 and 600 homeless people, Fernandes said, about the same number as when she began her position three years ago.
"I'm very sensitive to the linking of the words 'homeless' and 'law-breaking,' and that's what the mayor is doing and I haven't seen any indication that it's happening," Fernandes said.
Fernandes, along with a team that included a police officer, a park ranger and a minister, met with residents of Hanamaulu County Park on Thursday.
The campers (they call themselves "campers," not "homeless") at Hanamaulu, a suburb of Lihue, live there because it is close to jobs. Most work but cannot afford to rent a home. It is also the closest of any county beach park to a school. There are many children in the camp.
Kealii Blaisdell, who serves as spokesman for the campers, said he and his wife, Cory, met with Baptiste and told him: "The problem isn't the people who live in the parks. The real issue is the people who come to the parks at night to get drunk and deal drugs.
"The mayor promised additional police patrols at night, but there have been none. What happened is we complained and we are getting evicted."
The campers are under the impression that Baptiste thinks they are involved in drug trafficking.
"Look, drug dealers don't live in tents," one man said. "I don't have anything to do with drugs. I have a job, I can't afford a house and now the mayor won't even let me keep my tent. Can you explain the logic in that?"
One other piece of news the Hanamaulu campers received at Thursday's meeting: Although the campers at all the other parks have a month to find new homes, Hanamaulu is scheduled for three weeks of major maintenance, and they all have to be out by today, whether they have permits or not.
