Fri, 8:34: The corner on 3rd & Pine has gotten worse than I have ever seen it, which is saying a lot.
It's commonly populated with countless people quite openly doing drugs. And I tend to be oblivious, so my actually noticing it tells you how bad it's gotten. I'm talking, like, literally a crowd.
The McDonald's on that corner has been a notorious hot spot for violence and crime for decades. Through most of the pandemic they have closed it to indoor seating and only been taking orders from a window, but I have never seen it closed. This morning I walked past and it was closed. Continuing on down the block, the sidewalk was practically swimming with garbage, and there was even a small fire, some stack of papers or something burning that no one was even really paying attention to.
I did notice the crowd that had long been congregating, with similar vibes, along the west side of the block of 3rd between Union and Pike, was gone: a result of some recent camp clearings? That block was empty this morning for the first time in months. I guess they all just moved across the street and up a block?
I genuinely hate to turn to capitalism as an answer, but it seems clear that, without any other kind of government intervention at least, the more stores close downtown this worse this will get.