Smith Campus Center Plaza — Site of Overnight Access Restrictions
Harvard has begun taping off the plaza outside its Smith Campus Center every night after the building closes at 10 p.m., tying together tables and chairs so no one can sit or sleep there until 7 a.m. The move has displaced homeless residents who had used the Harvard Square plaza as an overnight gathering spot for years, scattering them to nearby streets, Cambridge Common, and the entrances of local businesses.
The plaza had been open to the public 24 hours a day, and Cambridge residents said they had never previously seen overnight access restricted, according to The Harvard Crimson. Anyone still on the plaza after closing must leave by midnight, and those removed cannot return until 7 a.m. Harvard University Police Department officers may remove people who stay after being told to go, and those who refuse can be arrested, the Crimson reported…