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FARMINGTON — Dealing with Farmington's homeless population continues to be a challenge, but some new ideas might be worth examining.
The city of Farmington last month sent four police officers, including Sgt. Shawn Scott, to attend a three-day class entitled "Addressing Homeless Issues in Your Community," hosted by the Colorado Springs Police Department's Homeless Outreach Team.
The three-member team explained that, in 2008, Colorado Springs had a serious problem. More than 500 homeless individuals had erected "tent cities" up and down a
1.5-mile corridor along a creek that ran through the city's center.
These tent cities were a haven for trash, human waste and criminal behavior, which rendered the multi-million-dollar trail system along the creek virtually unusable.
The city figured it was spending $54,000 a year per homeless person in medical, transportation, police and other service costs, equaling a total of $22 million each year.
Source: Farmington Daily Times