Plan to shift homeless
PLANS are being developed to move homeless people from Dean Park before the North Queensland Stadium opens next year.
Sources have told the Bulletin there is an intention to move the itinerants away from the area.
Fears of drunken abuse and anti-social behaviour have led to calls for action to deal with the problem.
Townsville City Council Mayor Jenny Hill said with the stadium opening fast approaching, a solution was needed to manage the anti-social behaviour happening in Dean Park and nearby areas.
FEARS of drunken abuse and antisocial behaviour around the North Queensland Stadium have prompted calls for action to deal with the chronic homelessness issue in Dean Park.
Sources have told the Townsville Bulletin there is a clear intention to remove homeless people from Dean Park before the stadium opens, but authorities hold concerns about a rushed approach to an issue that has existed in the city for more than 30 years.
Townsville Mayor Jenny Hill said she had been pushing for a solution for some time to dangerous behaviour occurring in public areas.
“With the NQ Stadium opening fast approaching, we need to have a solution in place to manage the antisocial behaviours that take place in Dean Park and nearby areas,” Ms Hill said.
“Any solution to these issues will have to be a collaboration between local organisations and all levels of government, which is why I’m organising a meeting to bring these people together.”
Many of those who inhabit the park benefit from the services of the nearby Townsville Drop In Centre.
Althea Projects runs the centre and CEO Paula La Rosa has warned of the dangers of simply moving the itinerants to another location.
“These people have been using our centre for over 30 years, we are a critical support service for them,” Ms La Rosa said.
“They need access to the services we provide just to meet their basic needs … I don’t think it’s a solution to just move the situation on.
“If we move people on I can assure you, from the conversations I’ve had with people, they will return.”
Ms La Rosa said finding another location was not the solution to the problem, which she labelled “chronic homelessness”.
Ms Hill said there needed to be a focus on making sure the services provided by the drop-in centre were still available to the people at Dean Park, while making it a “safe and welcoming” public space for the rest of the community.
There is concern that shifting those who reside in the park could cause greater issues for other locations such as Aitkenvale, which has been in the grip of homelessness problems in recent months.
Member for Townsville Scott Stewart said many of the problems at the park were from visitors and not people who regularly lived there.
“Some people go there and just want to party on,” he said.
“I have heard from people on Palm Island coming across to go down to the park and party on.
“There are short and long-term issues there … we are going to have a lot more people, particularly families, in that vicinity but we can’t just move people from Dean Park to Aitkenvale or somewhere else.”
Alcohol has been singled out as a key factor in behavioural issues at the park and Townsville Police District Chief Superintendent Kev Guteridge said officers were frequently cracking down on the issue.
“We are particularly vigilant when it comes to people consuming liquor in these public areas, primarily because it’s the consumption of liquor that results in other offending taking place,” he said.
Herbert MP Phil Thompson said the itinerants in Dean Park could not be moved on without being able to access the services provided by the drop-in centre, which could mean relocating the facility.
“This is a drop-in centre for people who are homeless, who need a place to shower, wash their clothes, watch TV and have something to eat,” Mr Thompson said.
“I don’t think it’s responsible … moving people away without having infrastructure in place where people are able to go to.
“We need a drop-in centre that is accessible to the people who have been going to Dean Park.”
Indigenous elder Dr Gracelyn Smallwood said the indigenous homeless issues in Townsville could be traced back to government intervention and alcohol management plans in other parts of the state.
She said many of the city’s homeless were not locals.