There is no quarrel with finding a location for the homeless during the winter; however, the armory in Burbank is next to elementary schools, a nursery school, a public park, a baseball field, a business center and a cemetery.
The claims by proponents that the homeless are bused in, bused out and constantly monitored by security guards is belied by our police chief’s own admission of police activity last year owing to the wanderings of the newly installed homeless.
The affected neighborhood is peopled by children, widows living alone and disabled using wheelchairs for transportation — all vulnerable to assaults. We, of the neighborhood, have always felt safe here and often walk to the businesses, post office, airport, park and schools without having to look over our shoulders. We wish to continue thinking we are safe in our area.
It appears that this is a case of Glendale pushing off a problem it would prefer not to deal with. But what is in it for Burbank? Is there quid pro quo? Will this end up being a permanent solution to Glendale’s homeless? Are any of the homeless convicted sex offenders? Are any of the homeless violent offenders? What assurances do we have that adequate screening is being preformed?
At City Council, we received no response to any of these questions. Instead, we were branded as heartless and uncaring. We heard the time-worn laments of the sob-sister crowd and a litany of invented statistics.
Indeed, the Burbank Leader ridiculed our actions in an editorial cartoon that completely missed the point. Note: Children are not placed at the armory; they and their families are provided vouchers to stay at local hotels and apartments. And correctly so.
