The Hobo Jungle

When we first started Anonymous Radio Redux 7 years ago, it was unknown to most of our writers what to pursue other than the obvious loss of the American economy, corrupt psychiatry and the conspiracy to mechanize society. As we emerge from a small area with the country’s lowest population density, sparks don’t exactly fly… Walking around in most of what would qualify as major cities, it was hard to come into contact with others one would call friends. Given the writer’s most recent experiences the subject is inclined toward Maine’s most obviously ignored yet blatantly obvious housing crisis.

Those without tend to live without. The situation on the streets of Waterville extends past what was once referred to by punks as a ‘scene.’ The few trap houses in the city have been rebuked by high housing costs and risks associated with potentially unstable tenants. An alien from 1985 may see this as a dystopian, cyberpunk-esk reality and a nomad might pass it by as a regular, not offended by the conditions all too familiar to life on the road. But for those with children and for struggling families it is no accident, or easy venture to thrive in subzero conditions. This is a multifaceted and unmitigated crisis of middle-ages proportions in terms of the expected long term sociological ramifications. With no guarantees and high heating costs, many are expected to rely on each other and cling to the state for survival.

And this dude is burning wood in his RV. You go buddy… Always wanted one of these. *Image upload, Jan 1st.*

The river front trail is currently being worked on by renovation crews hired for the beautification and restoration of the historic venue, Head of Falls. Across the Kennebec sits Halifax Park, where the Fourth of July is no longer celebrated. Beyond the porta shitters and cranes and mounds of dirt and concrete slabs which almost block it’s entrance is the head of a trail running parallel to the railroad company tracks. The Hobo Jungle trails currently host a dozen dwellings and makeshift campsites. Do you think the city could afford to build cheaply rented tiny houses for the homeless?

This trail used to be rather unoccupied but for a site or two… Waterville, Maine is a city of 18,000 along the Kennebec river that has just recently built a full sized homeless shelter. It has never seen a swelling of displaced people of this magnitude before. This swell of course coincides with soaring costs of living and food prices in Maine. Without the homeless, Waterville is a ghost town…