"SOMERVILLE - Below Davis Square, the outreach center the Somerville Homeless Coalition has used for 40 years is a refuge. The coffee is hot and a free breakfast awaits, as does help getting into a home. Above ground, it's often a different story. And as more of the region's homeless show up here, locals say increased violence and drug use are pushing the neighborhood to a breaking point."
""Police are here all the time. People are overdosing. There's needles all over the place. It's not good for the community. It's unacceptable and I'm sick and tired of it," said Clifford, 39, who said he's been homeless off and on for over a decade, and asked that The Boston Globe not use his last name to protect his privacy. He's now housed in Chelsea, but the Somerville native still spends his days in Davis because it's the place he knows best."
"On a recent morning, a dozen or so people huddled in groups. One man, in a T-shirt despite the October chill, writhed and groaned in a wheelchair, scratching a leg covered in sores. "That's my nephew," said Karolann, who looked on from a few feet away. She said she had just come from a methadone clinic, and was keeping an eye on him."
An outreach center below Davis Square provides hot coffee, free breakfast, and housing help while the street scene above has grown more severe. The number of people visible on the streets has risen, with many confronting mental illness, drug addiction, or both. Local residents report frequent police presence, overdoses, and discarded needles, and express frustration and safety concerns. Outreach staff note unprecedented visibility and larger numbers of people in need. Individuals cite dependence on methadone clinics and ongoing family caregiving amid worsening public health and public safety challenges.
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