Neighbors, business owners, cite concerns about homeless camp

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - A homeless camp, near the corner of 3rd Avenue and Ingra Street, has sparked concerns for several of the residents and property owners in the area - who said they’ve had property stolen and have dealt with trespassing from people in the camp.

“I had my own personal truck broken into and my wallet stolen,” said Rob Cupples, who owns Cupples Cottages. “Just overnight, I had building materials, a steel pipe stolen from me that I’m using to install security fencing.”

Cupples Cottages is a vacation rental business that Cupples said is no longer accepting bookings until a more permanent solution is found for the homeless in Anchorage. The Municipality of Anchorage has taken steps to improve the situation such as adding a fence, portable bathrooms and dumpsters. Cupples said he wants to see more site control and police presence.

“The things that are impacting the neighborhood are not homelessness related, they’re lawlessness related, the crime elements,” he said. “That is not being addressed.”

Veronica Pardo, who lives on 3rd Avenue, said she’s been victimized in the area as well.

“We’ve had numerous things stolen from our units, bicycles, anything that we may leave out, chairs, furniture,” Pardo said. “We’ve had our cars broken into.”

While many of the residents on 3rd Avenue disapprove of the homeless camp across the street, several said they understood the needs that many of the people living in the camps need.

“Just because they’re homeless doesn’t mean they’re any less of a person,” resident Thomas Thomas said. “They need showers, they need toilets, they need stuff, you know, to take care of themselves. If you can’t take care of yourself, how are you going to get a job?”

Several of the people living in the homeless camp near 3rd and Ingra are trying to better themselves and get out of a tough situation.

“We try to get along with the people across the street, we try to maintain respect at all times because we want to be respected,” said camper Allen LaVont Jefferson Kenny. “You got to give it to get it.”

Kenny said they clean up their own trash and don’t leave it on people’s properties. None of the people he knows, Kenny said, break laws.

“We keep our place clean,” Kenny said. “I’ve ordered that 20 feet around everyone’s camp should stay clean. I believe we are the cleanest camp here.”

Kenny said he was one of the first people to start living at the camp, and that he and many of the other longtime campers encourage others to keep the area clean.

“Everybody’s like a family,” camper Don Spurill said. “I mean, everybody stays to themselves. Nobody has no problems.”

Spurill said he has a job at a restaurant and that his living situation at the camp is a temporary solution.