Homelessness concerns near abandoned San Antonio Walgreens
The intersection of Culebra Road and Loop 1604 is known for traffic, but some say it’s gaining a reputation for homelessness.
Empty liquor bottles, blankets, and trash surround an abandoned Walgreens.
“It's eye opening to me,” said District 6 Councilman Greg Brockhouse. “We have people living in $500,000 homes, and less than a mile away we have some living under bridges and ditches.”
This past year the San Antonio Police Department received nearly 200 calls for issues related to homelessness at this particular intersection. Roughly 30 of those calls ended with arrests.
“We’ve got to get back out there again,” said Brockhouse. “They’ll move from that location, down to Potranco, then they'll come up to 151. They live in a triangle within District 6.”
We visited the area of concern at Loop 1604 and Culebra Road on Wednesday. Although we noticed bedding and blankets, no homeless people were around.
“Quite a few people hang out over here,” said Art Ford who works at a nearby business.
While trash and graffiti litter the area, a task force has been created to perhaps decrease the homeless related calls to police.
“If there's criminal activity we're on it,” said Councilman Brockhouse. “From a compassion perspective though, there are a lot of reasons people are homeless. We've got to show some compassion, and get people to services.”
