Boston to crack down on tent camps on the Methadone Mile

The city of Boston will begin looking to get people out of tents at Mass and Cass and in beds, Acting Mayor Kim Janey’s administration announces as conditions in the troubled area continue to deteriorate.

A draft ordinance that Janeys was to sign today states: “All agencies will now prioritize the enforcement of existing laws and the exercise of existing powers to prevent the location and maintenance of these camps in the city.

These existing laws combined with Public Health Emergency dictate that tents and temporary shelters will no longer be allowed on public roads in Boston City. ”

Health Director Marty Martinez, speaking to reporters at a press conference, said: “There is no doubt that the presence of tents, the presence of shelters has created a public health and safety crisis for those living in these shelters or in these tents. ”

Martinez stressed that this city does not want to lock the “unsecured” tent dwellers inside, and instead, city workers will be required to notify the homeless in advance and offer a treatment or shelter bed.

However, according to the ordinance, “If a person refuses to remove a camp after these steps have been completed, the owner’s refusal to remove it may be considered a disorder and subject to enforcement of existing laws in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”

Martinez said there are at least 150 tents up in the Mass and Cass area. The area, also called the Methadone Mile, is home to a fierce and dirty outdoor market for medicine, where hundreds of people are milling around ay and night, and where people can often be seen openly shooting up.

The Boston Public Health Commission also decided on Tuesday to declare that harmless homelessness and drug abuse is a public health crisis that gives the BPHC more authority to act.

The administration will set up a “central command structure” led by the city’s Department of Health & Human Services to coordinate the response, track shelters and treatment options.

A draft of Janey’s executive order said the city “will work to bring extra beds online” in the city and around the region, though details of where they remained vague.

The ordinance also said the Boston Transportation Department “will implement road safety measures to improve road and sidewalk safety and access in the Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard area.” They will also “continue to focus on the cleanliness of the area” and carry out regular cleanings in the dirty area, where workers have reported sick, and the city warns of rat-borne diseases.

The last part of the executive order is about police enforcement. The text says the Boston Police Department “will continue to enforce all laws relating to drug trafficking, human trafficking, disorderly conduct and violation (sic) to address victims of people suffering from substance abuse disorder.”

Administration officials at a news conference stressed that they are not trying to “criminalize” addiction or mental health problems, and will try to redirect people with lower crimes to treatment. But they also said that people who commit violence, human trafficking or other serious offenses will have to see the “consequences”.

Over the weekend, the Herald reported that a note was circulating to BPD officers that the department would focus on arresting people with multiple warrants in the Methadone Mile area. The memo noted that “top levels” in the city and state “required” the police to act.