I don't want to come down on the poor or the homeless, but I think that if Detroit wants to make people like the city and encourage tourism that it really needs to do something about all the homeless not just downtown but all over the city. Downtown it has gotten progressively worse year after year and walking a few blocks from your one place to another you get at times at least 5 or more people asking for money. It is one thing in my opinion to ask for a handout, but lately the guys and sometimes women are getting really aggressive about it and harassing people who don't give them money. In particular there is that one guy who drives me nuts, the guy with the fading red beard who will follow you going "sir, sir, sir, can I have some money for a coney? sir, sir, sir" and he does not stop until you basically scream at him in frustration or relent and give him something. Some of the homeless are clearly in bad health and personally I don't want to get too close because it looks like they have something contagious. When you see someone passed out in a doorway to a office building, or even worse taking a piss on the street or preferably in an alley I think it really makes the city look and quite frankly smell awful [[especially when it gets warm outside). Outside of the downtown area it seems that every major freeway exit/entrance is being staked out by beggers, and at some intersections they are at every corner.

So my question is what do we as a city and community do about this issue? One option talked about in the past was a pan handling ordinance but that does nothing to help solve the homeless problem, it just stops them [[in theory) from begging. Should the city create work programs to employ the homeless and give them jobs? What about those who are clearly in ill health, should we be willing to pay for their health care?
I do not mean this post to be a bitching session about the homeless because they are people too, and have rights, but with that being said I think the problem has a negative effect on the city and needs to be addressed.