Alston meets with residents & Chief Bellamy clears “The block”

A friend contacted me yesterday to tell me that police were no longer allowing people to stand on “the block,” a well-known and long-time gathering spot at the corner of Lee and Eugene Streets near the homeless shelter, soup kitchen and health clinic.  Traditionally, most of the people who stood out on the corner were homeless, and many of them spent their time on the block drinking. Today, I received reports from a number of sources with information about what may have led to the clearing of the block.

The controversial benches on the Downtown Greenway that were placed directly behind the homeless shelter’s back fence were removed after neighbors complained that they attracted criminal activity.  With the benches gone, attention turned to the “bigger problem” — the mostly homeless crowd loitering on “the block” two hundreds yards away.

Sources tell me that on Monday evening, County Commissioner Chair Skip Alston (who owns an apartment complex in that neighborhood) met with residents of the community.  Sources say that in response to the concerns of the residents, Greensboro Police Chief Tim Bellamy committed to step up enforcement on the block.  As of Tuesday morning, police have instituted a “zero tolerance” policy for loitering on the block at Lee and Eugene.