AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – As Augusta prepares for Golf Week, city crews are paving streets and clearing trash. But outreach workers say a year-round pattern of well-intentioned donations near bridges and homeless camps is making that work harder — and keeping people on the street longer.
Major Robert Silas said donations of tents, sleeping bags and food accumulate at encampments and create larger problems over time.
“Augusta’s a caring community. And we get folks that want to bring stuff down here… tents, sleeping bags, food… and they hoard stuff… and it just grows and grows and grows,” Silas said.
Cleanup burden falls on city
The buildup leads to more trash, more vermin and more calls for cleanup — responsibilities that fall on city engineering crews, Silas said…