KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Businesses in the east Crossroads say they’re fighting issues that go along with homelessness due to an expansive camp that stretches four blocks and can be seen from Highway 71.
“On Highway 71 as you cross over the overpass, it’s all you can see over there,” said Tj Templeton, gallery director at the Bunker Center for the Arts.
People, tents and garbage cover a fenceline from east 16th Street and Troost Avenue to east 19th Street and Troost Avenue.
On the other side of the fence resides industrial and art businesses in the east Crossroads.
“It went from being hardly noticeable to you just cannot miss it,” Templeton said. “It’s terrible for my business because I have a reception tonight, people will be parking on the streets and they know they will be parking next to a homeless camp.”
Templeton locks the door during business hours and has cameras because he’s seen the issues firsthand.
“Cars get broken into all the time,” he said.
Other east Crossroad businesses claim people are threatening customers, starting fires on corners, leaving needles behind and defecating in the street.
“I mean it’s a small village,” Templeton said. “You have clotheslines, you have somebody in a chair giving haircuts to other people, it’s a real serious problem.”
Templeton says the businesses decided to reach out for help but haven't made much progress.
“The Missouri Department of Transportation says it’s the city of Kansas City’s problem, the city says it’s the Missouri Department of Transportation’s problem,” he said.
A MoDOT spokesperson tells KSHB 41 that what Templeton shared is the truth, and admits it’s frustrating because it can’t be one or the other entity.
Additionally, the spokesperson says it’s a law enforcement issue, claiming MoDOT will clean the camps if they are unoccupied.
