Topeka group takes aim at ‘untapped resource’ with Kansas River
7 March 2024
Context: the above video was aired on Feb. 27 during the first phase of the new camping ordinance’s enforcement in Topeka.
TOPEKA (KSNT) – Thousands of pounds of trash and debris are now cleared from a stretch of the Kansas River in Topeka as city officials enforce a new camping ordinance.
Several camps belonging to homeless individuals living along the Kansas River were cleared last week on Tuesday, Feb. 27. This is part of a larger enforcement effort being implemented in a phased approach by city officials to enforce a camping ordinance passed last year limiting where people can camp in the Capital City.
City of Topeka spokeswoman Rosie Nichols told 27 News that the first phase of the enforcement process took six days to complete for the area between the Kansas Avenue and Topeka Boulevard bridges on the north side of the Kansas River. In total, more than 177 tons of trash, a little more than 355,000 pounds, was removed from the area.
27 News also spoke with District 1 City Councilwoman Christina Valdivia-Alcala about the recent cleanup efforts. She attributes the number of homeless in Topeka to a shortage on housing and says city crews are working hard to make sure the ordinance is effective.
“A lot of those camps were already abandoned,” Valdivia-Alcala said. “Some unsheltered folks helped assist the Topeka Police Department with cleanup of the camps.”
Following this, the city will move to the next project area which is just east of the Kansas Avenue bridge along the Kansas River and north of the levee. In the past, a section of this area received the name ‘Tent City‘ due to the number of tents present.
This is expected to start on or around March 25, depending on weather conditions. Similar to the first phase of the ordinance’s enforcement, signs will be posted in the area in the near future alerting locals of the upcoming cleanup operations.
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