What’s happening to Des Moines?

dmclone

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Oct 20, 2006
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I just went to Austin this past weekend, its a bad situation there. They have huge amount of "tent cities" under the overpass of the highway and they are laying everywhere in the streets around the 6th street area. Just a really sad situation all around.
Great. I just booked a hotel down there really close to 35.
 

Jammin’

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Jul 18, 2009
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I just went to Austin this past weekend, its a bad situation there. They have huge amount of "tent cities" under the overpass of the highway and they are laying everywhere in the streets around the 6th street area. Just a really sad situation all around.

Hear ya, in 2019 the ATX city officials tried to, in good faith I think, implement a hybrid homeless model of plans from Seattle/Portland/San Francisco. ATX officials thoughts they could do it better and were given an opportunity to test it out. It’s been two years and ATX officials are pretty much all opening admitting to it not working as intended with changes coming soon.

Sounds like the power players are on the same page and are currently working on figuring an alternative plan B very soon, so I don’t foresee it getting worse.

Covid hit downtown ATX hard and without all the festivals every other weekend, the downtown area is still super fun, but there’s definitely a presence of homeless campsites and closed down building fronts here and there.
 
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SEIOWA CLONE

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Dec 19, 2018
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Don't get me wrong, Austin was still a great time! Just know ahead of time you will see it pretty much everywhere in the downtown area.
That was our experience a few years ago when we went down to the ISU/UT game. We stayed downtown, a block from a homeless shelter. We took the advice of my daughter in law that graduated from UT. She said just keep walking and do not engage them in conversation, if they say something, answer but DO NOT stop. Just keep going. We asked her about giving them a few bucks and she said, "If you give one money, the rest will be all over you wanting their share also."

As we left on Sunday, it was raining, hitting the I-35 bridge, we saw what must have been 30 or 40 homeless sleeping under the bridge, trying to get out of the rain.
 
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MartyFine

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Jul 7, 2009
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So, took the girlfriend and her son skating today and on the way home we see some lady crouched down. The closer we get we realize this woman is taking a damn **** on the side of the road!

Its kind of sad, but the homeless population in Des Moines seems to be getting over populated.

This is what happens when you decimate mental health treatment in a state.
 

BeTheCyclone

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Oct 19, 2010
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Sounds to me like it’s a nationwide problem.

So what’s the cause, and what’s the solution? A lot of complaining on here, but no solutions.

Solutions:
1. Legalize marijuana. That should help them deal with it.
2. Give millions to pakistan for gender studies instead of homeless programs here.
3. Force people to use the most expensive energy resources in order to conserve the environment while creating tent cities that destroy the environment.
4. Get rid of Churches actually helping and instead listen to rich elite people in Hollywood and in the media give podcasts discussing it.
5. Promote shows about nomad life as the new trend.

jimlad for those needing it.
 
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MartyFine

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Solutions:
1. Legalize marijuana. That should help them deal with it.
2. Give millions to pakistan for gender studies instead of homeless programs here.
3. Force people to use the most expensive energy resources in order to conserve the environment while creating tent cities that destroy the environment.
4. Get rid of Churches actually helping and instead listen to rich elite people in Hollywood and in the media give podcasts discussing it.
5. Promote shows about nomad life as the new trend.

jimlad for those needing it.

I agree that the Q conspiracy theorists destroying churches has not helped anything...

https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-03-03/la-na-church-qanon-conspiracy-theories
 

Cycsk

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I just went to Austin this past weekend, its a bad situation there. They have huge amount of "tent cities" under the overpass of the highway and they are laying everywhere in the streets around the 6th street area. Just a really sad situation all around.


There is a shelter in Austin just north of the 6th Street that functions as a magnet for homeless. Same thing in KC just west of Veterans Auditorium.
 

Gossamer

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Apr 10, 2014
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well, my first time at Kinnick (and my last), I saw a guy piss on the side of it...which seemed completely fine considering that entire place and town smells like a urinal...

as for DSM, not sure it's any worse or better than it has been. Unfortunately, I've seen people take ***** in places other than bathrooms in the suburbs...off railroad tracks and bike trails...sometimes, people just gotta go???
 

alarson

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Not sure how those things are connected.

Java joes main issue as I understand it was that there aren't as many people downtown during the day as a result of COVID. Mews closed as a direct result of COVID.

The parking garage mess with mandelbaum is a complicated mess, but I don't think it did in Java joes.
 

Gunnerclone

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Jul 16, 2010
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Not sure how those things are connected.

Java joes main issue as I understand it was that there aren't as many people downtown during the day as a result of COVID. Mews closed as a direct result of COVID.

The parking garage mess with mandelbaum is a complicated mess, but I don't think it did in Java joes.

I think the tweet is saying why the **** is DSM pouring money in to parking garages that no one uses and letting long standing business in the same area go down.
 
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alarson

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I think the tweet is saying why the **** is DSM pouring money in to parking garages that no one uses and letting long standing business in the same area go down.

Because that's not what happened.

The existing garage was falling apart. It needed to be replaced. As part of the replacement, a large tower was proposed on one side, and a theater on the other, which resulted in the garage size being increased.

This garage was also like 90% complete pre-covid, so it's not like they were choosing between the garage and assisting businesses hurt by the pandemic. Not that it would necessarily be a wise decision in this case anyway. We don't know when or even if downtown will ever return to the prior traffic patterns.
 

cyclonespiker33

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If I'm thinking of the correct location, the parking ramp they mention has been open for at least a couple of months.
 
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Gunnerclone

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Jul 16, 2010
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Because that's not what happened.

The existing garage was falling apart. It needed to be replaced. As part of the replacement, a large tower was proposed on one side, and a theater on the other, which resulted in the garage size being increased.

This garage was also like 90% complete pre-covid, so it's not like they were choosing between the garage and assisting businesses hurt by the pandemic. Not that it would necessarily be a wise decision in this case anyway. We don't know when or even if downtown will ever return to the prior traffic patterns.

The tower and theater that never materialized. I’m saying the tweet is just noting the culmination of a terrible decision by the city to help an investor that wasn’t up to the task and now here we are with a parking garage and a couple DSM institutions shutting their doors. It’s frustration. It’s priorities. I get it’s not direct cause and effect.
 

JP4CY

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Thought Losing Hairy Mary's sucked but now losing the Mews blows.
 

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