Survey: Many homeless lack basic comforts

By Timothy Pratt

Monday, March 7, 2005 | 10:54 a.m.

Nearly one in three homeless men and women doesn't always have access to a restroom, and nearly one in four can't always get clean drinking water, according to preliminary results from an annual survey of that population.

"We're looking at a situation like developing nations ... and in the United States we pride ourselves on being a more civilized nation," Nancy Downey, a sociologist who worked on the survey results, said about the findings.

The homeless without access to such basic necessities is on the rise; in previous years 25 percent surveyed were lacking access to a restroom and 18 percent couldn't always get potable water.

"We're not addressing the problem or making an impact," Downey said about the apparent trend.

Almost 1,800 people completed the survey in November at the 12th annual Stand Down for the Homeless, 87 percent of whom said they were homeless at the time. The one-day event -- called the largest of its kind by national experts -- offers services to the homeless and is the only ongoing source of detailed information locally on this hard-to-study population. The survey asked 25 questions. Among the findings:

Most of the figures were about the same as those of the past six Stand Down surveys.

Another figure that has risen slightly -- a problem that was noted at the Stand Down itself -- was the percentage of those who said they lacked photo ID.

That number was nearly 18 percent, up from 15 percent in recent years.

The issue of identification is raised whenever homeless people seek help from private and public agencies alike, since it is the first step to any application process.

Regarding access to bathrooms, the survey asked, "Do you have adequate access to restroom facilities?" People answered "no" 15.4 percent of the time and "sometimes" 14.5 percent of the time.

Similarly, the survey asked, "Do you have access to clean drinking (potable) water?" and 10.6 percent answered "no" while 12.1 percent answered "sometimes."

The issue of restrooms has been controversial in recent months, as cleanups, sweeps, arrests and citations have all resulted from people using downtown streets to urinate and defecate.

Downey said the lack of means to meet basic needs creates conditions for spreading disease, which has been the reason municipal authorities have given in the past for breaking up several homeless camps.

Adrian Lee Noffsinger, manager for the Las Vegas Rescue Mission downtown, has seen the problem firsthand.

The area behind the mission has been cited by the Clark County Health District as a health hazard and the subject of a one-week Las Vegas-led effort to clear up a camp of about 200 people, as well as city and state-funded cleanups.

When the health district notified his agency and the city of Las Vegas of the need to clean up the area last summer, both began regular efforts to clean the streets and sidewalks, efforts that only ended recently.

However, the areas still lack restrooms and water, Noffsinger said.

Dealing with the issue is "like ... beating our heads against the wall," he said.

His agency doesn't have the funds to operate a 24-hour restroom.

After months of back and forth he said the city recently told his agency it could help find funds for building one. However, there are no funds to commission the plans needed for proposing such a project, he said.

Meanwhile, starting today, he said the mission will be expanding the hours the mission lets area homeless people use four Porta-Potties on site. Formerly open from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., they will now be available from 12 noon to 6 p.m.

Given the lack of facilities, some homeless people run afoul of the law when using the streets as a restroom, which then becomes an obstacle to getting back into housing if the fine is not paid or court dates are not met.