It was a packed house at the Nyack Village Hall on Monday night as residents and business owners expressed concerns about homelessness and panhandling downtown. “This is a serious problem and it’s affecting businesses all over town,” says Marianne Olive, Owner of Olive’s.
The village hosted a meeting to share their efforts and get feedback from the community. “We want a downtown that people feel safe,” says Nyack Mayor Joseph Rand. “We put a curfew in place. We’ve been working with the police and social services to try to bring services to these people, to give them better options than sleeping out in the cold.”
Rand says the uptick in panhandling started two years ago and the increase of people sleeping in public spaces started last year. He says some progress has been made…