The city of Atlanta is on the verge of a major new effort to clear out homeless people living under bridges, a move that officials tie to public safety after a string of fires but that raises questions about where people without homes will end up.
One option proposed: Creating a large new shelter in Georgia’s capital city.
A spokesman for the mayor said that the sweep will begin “in the coming weeks.” People involved with homeless services say they’ve been told it could start Friday or next week.
The city has declined to share most details of the operation publicly, including which specific bridge areas will be targeted, how many people it anticipates moving, and what kind of housing and locations it might provide to those displaced. Instead, “due to the sensitivity of the matter, the Administration’s priority is having a direct dialogue with community leaders and stakeholders ahead of any action taken,” spokesman Michael Smith wrote on Wednesday in an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.