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Jmac3366 t1_iz40knp wrote

I would say it is getting worse but still nowhere near a California level

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JTPH_70 t1_iz44k0w wrote

There was an article several weeks ago saying 1 in 3 Rhode Islanders could not put food on the table. Yet, I see plenty of people out shopping for Christmas. Rental costs have exceeded what many can afford. The PUC allowed utility prices to go up by record amounts. In general credit card use is up all over not just in RI. People are certainly getting pinched hard in this economy. But I am not sure its to California levels.

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kinglear__ t1_iz46dlq wrote

California is another level. Until Roger Williams Park becomes an encampment with 300 plus homeless in one area, it's not even close. I'm from RI but also spent a year in the bay area. You haven't seen homeless until you've gone there.

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aKnowing t1_iz4cqfz wrote

Replying to Jmac3366 (#870,146)

Definitely getting worse, there’s gotta be at least 6-12 tents set up by the highway behind wickenden right now that only popped up the past week or so

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tads73 t1_iz4gmt9 wrote

Bad? There are homeless scattered about, but they are not the people to be frighten of. It's the businessmen who will steal money you don't have you need to be careful of.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_iz4hjx0 wrote

It’s not good and has gotten worse but I’d honestly question if someone who’d make that comparison has been to any major city in California recently.

That state is 20% of the country’s homeless population, with the overwhelming majority of them in just 2 metro areas. Here, the problem is bad. There, it is unfathomable.

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veryheavycoat t1_iz4jye1 wrote

New England is super classist so they are more scared of homeless people and exaggerate the problem and blame the homeless for failing them

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swank401 t1_iz4jz05 wrote

Def not half way to Cali, but yea it’s noticeable for sure

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ThucydidesButthurt t1_iz4npja wrote

It's not remotely comparable to LA or SF, like not even close lol

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pvdcaveman t1_iz4p52e wrote

The situation is bad everywhere, but here it’s not even comparable to other places in the country. Every metro on the west coast is 1000x worse. I have seen people openly use heroin in Portland OR and SF. Drove through the Boston tent city the other day and recently went to New Orleans and it was quite bad there too. There’s just much smaller numbers here and they tend not to be centered in the walkable areas. It’s definitely ticking up.

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TheTr7nity t1_iz4rztg wrote

Nothing is worse than California especially San Francisco and Los Angeles. I’ve traveled all over the country and RI isn’t that bad although I feel the situation will get worse in the coming years.

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littylikeatit t1_iz4s1b9 wrote

Replying to tads73 (#870,823)

I don’t think they were necessarily calling homeless bad. More the situation bad. The fact people don’t have a place to live (and that number is increasing) and have to pitch a tent in a park is bad - the people are not necessarily bad though.

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littylikeatit t1_iz4sfb3 wrote

I think it’s bad in a sense that it will get worse before it improves, but definitely not on the levels of other large cities like others have said. But with that being said, I think homelessness is a huge issue that needs to be taken more seriously. It’s bad for the people living on the streets, bad for business, bad for the environment, bad for crime. I just don’t have a reasonable solution because rents are fucked and shelters suck ass.

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lom117 t1_iz4t5e6 wrote

It's probably about average in the US, maybe a little higher than a couple years ago,(for obvious reasons.)

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leavingthecold t1_iz4u5ui wrote

California homeless vs Rhode Island homeless are polar opposites. You can watch all the Youtube videos but until you go there its on another level compared to here.

CA has nice weather year round while RI doesn't

CA has had a "meth" problem for decades while RI has barely seen a meth issue here.

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Interesting_Dot9639 t1_iz4v829 wrote

It is definitely becoming much worse but is nothing like the west coast. But you don’t ever want it to get that bad

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Good-Expression-4433 t1_iz4zomh wrote

It's gotten considerably worse but nowhere near California bad. California has a high population, high homeless population, and other states ship their homeless to there. Providence is rough, especially in spots like over on and around Smith or Thayer but places like LA and even Portland, OR are like the perfect storm of shit when it comes to homeless populations.

It just feels worse than it is because the city is so small and the homeless are so spread out due to cops breaking up their encampments, so you encounter them more frequently instead of out west where they're common but they try to congregate in camps. Wickenden is definitely starting to build up a bit though.

Rental costs are fucking skyrocketing faster than jobs around here pay, utilities are shooting up, plus some people still catching up from the pandemic as not everyone got the checks. It's going to be a very rough winter. People who work service jobs are finding themselves increasingly fucked and those of us on social security and disability are finding ourselves without any resources after the pandemic and shifting of resources. If I wasn't a trans woman that found a room for rent on Facebook, I'd be homeless right now.

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Moltoconfusion t1_iz50cei wrote

Yes..and the problem is these hugh uo east side residents that run the city spending money on useless.stuff like bike lanes and adding boulders to parks and spiked park benches. Instead of actually combatting the problem and helping.

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leavingthecold t1_iz59ukq wrote

Replying to HeadyBeersBrah (#872,084)

Heroin problem has always been here from what I can tell but in the early 2000's the numbers did seem to rise however not having a meth issue here can be a blessing in disguise. Home grown meth labs are something else

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vegemouse t1_iz5khrf wrote

From California, was in Providence a few weeks ago for about a week. What homeless people?

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rohankishememe t1_iz5o577 wrote

No thats actually such an extreme exaggeration, your friend watches too much news, or lives somewhere outside of providence.

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Goodnightfutureghost t1_iz5pi0g wrote

Replying to kinglear__ (#870,368)

Just moved here from Sacramento. There’s no comparison at all. Tent cities line the highways there. Unless you’re wealthy, chances are you drive by dozens of homeless people every single day. It’s heartbreaking and a huge reason why we moved out (also because we can’t afford it and we don’t want to be in a tent city under I-80).

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Vallejotacoz OP t1_iz5untx wrote

Replying to rustybullrake (#871,415)

dude I have ADHD, very hyper and I moved recently and am lonely, so this is my social outlet for now. I have a lot of shit on my mind. Maybe you haven't met people like me, not everyone who thinks kinda differently is some completely mental wreck or a bot.

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Proof-Variation7005 t1_iz5w3gd wrote

Replying to vegemouse (#872,689)

It's pretty rare that I won't see at least 1 homeless person in Providence, but at the same time, I saw more in 1 single day in Los Angeles a few months ago then I've seen in the last 10 years in Providence combined.

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Vallejotacoz OP t1_iz5x93g wrote

Replying to vegemouse (#873,162)

because it's a nationwide and even worldwide issue, it affects friends or people I know in said cities, it affects me HELLA badly too where I live, etc. Why not? I feel like I'm a mild journalist doing this and I actually get a good insight.

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