Resident Proposes Modules For Homeless in Santa Monica

Local resident Randy Walburger's solution for Santa Monica's homeless: Create urban campsites via seven foot plastic modules that can be stacked on top of one another and placed in parking lots or undeveloped land, reports the Santa Monica Daily Press. While the campsites would be closed during the day to discourage loitering, Julie Rusk, human services manager for the city, cites safety concerns about the project ("Concentrating a lot of people in one place is just not what we are trying to do," she says), while John Maceri, executive director of homeless services group OPCC, fears the short-term solution could eventually create "a pretty large encampment." Also, best typo of the week--and don't we know typos: "[Walburger almost] became homeless a few years back when he lost much of his money in the sock market, causing him to become severely depressed." Oh, that unpredictable argyle market. Related article in Saturday's edition: Everyone in Santa Monica fears development, tall towers, and more density. [Image of module via SMDP]
· One Tough Sell [SMDP]