HONOLULU — Hawaii lawmakers are pushing to create government-sanctioned tent cities, or “ohana zones,” to help address the state’s homeless issue.
HONOLULU — Hawaii lawmakers are pushing to create government-sanctioned tent cities, or “ohana zones,” to help address the state’s homeless issue.
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports legislators want to open ohana zones for homeless families with school-age children.
Lawmakers in both the state House and Senate have not agreed on the details of what Hawaii’s next ohana zone should look like, how big it should be or where it should be located.
But state Rep. John Mizuno, chairman of the House Health and Human Services Committee, hopes to open the next ohana zone by the end of the year.
There is little support for including chronically homeless people with substance abuse or mental health issues or tendencies toward violence — one of the most visible segments of Hawaii’s homeless population that regularly generate complaints from businesses, residents and tourists.
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Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com
