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By Damian Mann Mail Tribune October 01. 2014 2:00AM Railroad Park groups object to homeless feeding plan Medford Parks and Recreation director Brian Sjothun addresses the concerns of railroad enthusiasts on Tuesday about feeding the homeless at Railroad Park. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Railroad Park supporters are steamed over an idea to feed more homeless people and potentially scare off families who bring their children to birthday parties and other events. City officials met with more than 30 people who are involved in five organizations that have improved and help maintain the park for decades and turned it into a popular local attraction. The railroad organizations told city officials that they were ignored in the recent discussions about feeding the homeless in the park, a decision that they say could seriously hurt a family-oriented environment that they try to foster. “It scares us to death,” said Dale Butler, president of the Southern Oregon Live Steamers. On Sept. 19, the Medford City Council voted unanimously to designate Medford's Railroad Park and a small parking lot at the intersection of Almond and East Ninth streets as rotating locations for organizations and individuals to provide food for homeless and hungry individuals during Hawthorne Park's year-long closure for restoration. Officially, Railroad Park closes to the public in November, but Girl Scouts events, birthday celebrations and the Polar Express are all scheduled during the winter season. Hawthorne Park, a popular hangout for the homeless, is scheduled to close within a few weeks for a $1.65 million remodel over the next year. The park has seen its share of problems associated with vagrancy over the years, including stabbings, fights, dog attacks, littering, disorderly conduct, public intoxication and public urination. Butler and the other organizations worry that the problems they already have with the homeless will only escalate if more organizations provide free food. “If the homeless are using our parking lot, other people will say, ‘We’re scared to come in there,’” Butler said. The trains and other exhibits attract hundreds of visitors to the park on a given day, he said. The homeless who use the park currently have caused problems and messes, and many worried that more homeless would create an even bigger mess. “We’re going to welcome somebody pooping and peeing and intimidating everyone,” said Mary Wooding with Southern Oregon Live Steamers. Others at the meeting with city officials worried that some of the homeless could be sexual predators. Brian Sjothun, director of Medford Parks and Recreation, said he should have done a better job explaining what was going to happen to the park. “I apologize for not coming to this group sooner,” he said. Sjothun said local organizations began feeding the homeless in 2007. However, most of the food is given to local families that are struggling to feed their children and often drive to Hawthorne Park to pick up their meals. “We don’t want to push away a service that helps families,” he said. He said probably only 10 to 15 percent of the food given away is to actual homeless people. He said the U.S. Constitution protects the rights of organizations and individuals to pass out food for free in public parks. “We’re trying to deal with an issue that’s almost unsolvable,” he said. The city can’t require anyone to obtain a permit if food is being given away without charge, he said. However, groups or individuals that wish to reserve exclusive use of an area for food distribution will be required to obtain a six-month renewable permit through the city, and will be required to remove their own trash. Sjothun said that so far no groups or individuals have sought a permit. Sjothun did offer to bring in portable toilets to help stop people from using the bushes. In the future, Sjothun said the city could install new bathrooms that are difficult to vandalize. Medford police Lt. Curtis Whipple told the railroad organizations that he would have more patrols at the park. “We will have more police here,” he said. “We do arrive as fast as we can.” Whipple said that so far this year Medford police have excluded 218 individuals from local parks because they were engaged in unlawful behavior. Most of the exclusions were from Hawthorne Park, but Whipple said 20 exclusions were in Railroad Park over the past month and a half. Whipple said he would like to see the law expanded so that if a person is excluded from one park that individual would be excluded from all parks. Councilor Chris Corcoran told the audience he would convey their worries to the City Council. “Nothing is set in stone,” he said. But Corcoran said it is a very difficult problem, and no matter where the city allows the feeding of homeless, it will receive complaints. “We’re not going to please everybody,” he said. The city wants to improve Hawthorne Park to make it more family-friendly and to make it a less welcoming environment for the homeless to hang out. “We already have a family-oriented park, and we would like to keep it that way,” said Patricia Butler with the Southern Oregon Live Steamers. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected]. Follow on Twitter at @reporterdm. http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20141001/NEWS/141009986 © 2015 Copyright © 1995-2011 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Statement -->