BEAUMONT, Texas — A Beaumont business owner is voicing concerns over the city’s growing homeless population, which she says is driving away customers. Barbara Wilson, owner of BAW Resale and Interiors on Calder, has been in business for 12 years and describes the issue of loitering as an ongoing nuisance.
“My frustration has been with Some Other Place and trying to get them to, you know, to clean up the sidewalk and to get the people to not launder and lay all over the sidewalks throughout the day, at least during their business hours,” Wilson said.
Wilson explained that maintaining a clean sidewalk, parking lot, and store has been nearly impossible, making it difficult to attract customers. She has placed gates behind her building to prevent restroom use on her property and noted that the issue has recently attracted drug dealers during business hours.
“It’s a nuisance for the businesses. You know, yesterday I had a guy that’s completely high and just staggering all in the streets and all over the place. And, you know, that’s not safe for my customers, you know, and what we have going on here,” Wilson said.
Chris Robertson, CEO and President of Some Other Place, a nearby nonprofit serving the homeless, said he is actively making changes to keep clients inside the gated area.
“All day long, we’re open to give people an opportunity to come inside. And today, we’re waiting on an order to come so that we can put privacy slats inside the gate so that we can have an outdoor section,” Robertson said.
Robertson added that he encourages clients to stay inside the nonprofit’s day center and is coordinating with law enforcement to keep the streets and sidewalks clean.
“I’ve talked to Code Enforcement. We’ve talked to the Beaumont Police Department. We’re now signed up with the Real-Time Crime Center. And so what we’ve been told repeatedly is that if somebody is outside and you ask them to leave and they don’t, then you need to go ahead and call the Real-Time Crime Center, call the police, make sure they come out and ask them to leave,” Robertson said.
Beaumont City Manager Kenneth Williams said he will have staff review the situation and respond.
