Woonsocket says church's homeless tents must go
3:13 PM Mon, Apr 27, 2009 | Permalink
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WOONSOCKET, R.I. -- When Pastor Brian Souza sheltered the homeless in tents at his church on April 20, he had their safety in mind, he says. He also wanted to draw attention to Rhode Island's growing homeless population. Last week, city officials said the homeless cannot sleep in the four dome tents Souza pitched in the courtyard of his church, called River United Methodist Communities. The tents are in a commercial, not a residential zone, Joel Mathews, the city's director of planning and development, said Monday. Even if they were part of a residence, the tents could only house family members, he said. "In that zone, we could cite him for a number of things," including safety and sanitary issues, Mathews said. Already, some businesses have complained, he added. The 101-year-old church sits on Federal Street, a short road between Clinton and Main Streets, near the Blackstone River. Souza said he wants the city or state to find permanent homes for the six men, who are members of his church. 
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Typical attitude of Mayor Susan Menard.
Ten years of her mismanagement has brought the City to a nearly unavoidable bankruptcy filing in late May
The School, Police, and Fire Departments are in chaos. Huge tax hikes loom.
State auditors recently concluded the city had no "real financial controls in place"
Instead of dealing with these issues, Empress Menard, through here henchmen, have ordered a local Church to remove 4-small tents, erected on the Church property, to house 6-homeless people.
No doubt the Church will refuse and Menard will order her police department to enter Church property and "tear them down"
No one ever, ever, challenges the Empress and gets away with it.
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why doesn't souza find homes for these six men with some of his parishioners? or, why doesn't his parish all pitch in and pool their funds to pay for or offset rent for them? this is what would happen in a mormon temple...they take care of their own.
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Unbelievable! The church did the right thing, drawing attention to the plight of homelessness in Woonsocket. Why is it o.k. to pitch a tent in Providence, but not here?
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It should be noted that a number of peopel over the years peopel at The River have brought peopel home. The congregation is about 75 to 80% homeless and very poor so paying to put people in apartments is near inpossible. The church is open to donations that are handled through our Matthew 25 outreach. These donation will help with temporary shelters such as tents as well as more perminate solutions. Foe information therivercommunities@cox.net
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