It’s been one month since the cash-strapped Bethesda Center for the Homeless in Winston-Salem reopened its day shelter. The move came following months of closure due to a lack of finances. Local downtown business owners, concerned about the rise in homelessness in the city, raised enough money to keep the doors open through the end of the year.
On September 26, following months of what city officials described as disruptive behavior at Merschel Park, staff members removed all furniture there. The park had become a popular hangout for people downtown experiencing homelessness, folks like Tony, who asked that his last name not be used.
“I think instead of taking the chairs away, they need to help these people,” he says. “Some of these homeless people that can’t get into shelters because they’re full, ain’t got nowhere to go.”…