Scenic Southern cities tarnished by homeless crime scourge must hold ‘feet to the fire,’ GOP lawmaker warns

One of the South’s astir recognizable postcard settings is facing increasing concerns implicit homelessness, encampments and nationalist safety, with critics informing the issues are spreading beyond Savannah’s storybook streets to different scenic Georgia cities.

Now, a Republican lawmaker says it’s clip to clasp "local governments’ feet to the fire."

State Rep. Houston Gaines, who is moving for Congress, is backing authorities aimed astatine forcing cities similar Savannah, Athens and Atlanta to much aggressively enforce laws connected amerciable camping, loitering and panhandling.

"What we person done with this authorities is we're going to enactment those section governments' feet to the occurrence and we're going to marque definite they're enforcing the laws that they are expected to beryllium enforcing, whether that's connected amerciable camping oregon loitering oregon panhandling," Gaines told Fox News Digital.

ONE OF AMERICA'S PRETTIEST CITIES SCRAMBLES TO RECLAIM STORYBOOK STREETS FROM HOMELESS CAMPS, DRUG DENS

An unhoused idiosyncratic rests connected a seat successful Reynolds Square connected Tuesday, October 21, 2025. (Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

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Gaines, who lives successful Athens, said the contented goes beyond disposable homelessness and has go a broader public-order and transgression occupation affecting concern owners, homeowners, students and visitors.

"I've had a constituent who erstwhile she near municipality for abrogation she came backmost and noticed that a stateless idiosyncratic had been successful her excavation for the past week," Gaines said.

He besides described the kinds of complaints helium says helium hears from concern owners and spot owners successful Georgia.

"Business owners get [at their storefront] astatine 5:30 successful the greeting and they got idiosyncratic sleeping connected their beforehand porch," helium said. "Or they had idiosyncratic that's defecated close successful beforehand of their business."

Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Bert Brantley has besides said the interaction is felt regular crossed the concern community.

"Our businesses, workers, and downtown residents expect our nationalist information strategy to place those committing crimes and present consequences for those amerciable activities," Brantley said successful November 2024.

Located wrong show of City Hall is simply a aureate dome that is simply a fashionable spot for locals and tourists alike. (Richard Burkhart via Imagn Content Services, LLC)

Savannah aboriginal passed an municipality camping ordinance prohibiting camping, storing idiosyncratic spot successful nationalist spaces and obstructing sidewalks oregon traffic.

Since the instrumentality took effect, the metropolis says enforcement has led to 179 citations and 15 arrests. Officials besides accidental 135 individuals person engaged with work providers, with astir 30% entering shelters aft interaction with authorities.

Gaines argued that section governments successful different Georgia cities person not gone acold capable and said that has near residents and concern owners stuck paying the price.

"There's superior expenses and consequences for spot owners, homeowners that are putting up information cameras oregon fencing, oregon concern owners, state stations, storefronts," helium said. "Some successful Atlanta are having to prosecute full-time security."

A stateless campy was being cleared by the metropolis of Atlanta connected Jan. 16, 2025. (Fox News)

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He said House Bill 295 is designed to unit section officials to enactment by making section governments financially liable erstwhile spot owners endure losses due to the fact that laws against amerciable camping, loitering, panhandling and related enactment are not being enforced.

Under the bill, spot owners tin question compensation for documented mitigation costs oregon reduced spot worth tied to a "policy, pattern, oregon practice" of non-enforcement oregon the attraction of a nationalist nuisance.

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"The mode to deed these section governments is successful their pocketbook," Gaines said. "It's the mode to truly instrumentality connected immoderate of these folks and that's wherefore I deliberation this measure is going to beryllium truthful effective."

Tulips successful afloat bloom astatine the entranceway to the Children's Garden astatine the State Botanical Gardens of Georgia and connected the eve of the archetypal time of outpouring successful Athens. Ga., connected Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

Critics person argued that tougher enforcement tin simply determination stateless individuals, cause users and loiterers into neighboring areas alternatively than lick deeper problems. Gaines rejected that statement and said the measure is besides intended to unit section governments to supply services.

"Our extremity here, we're not criminalizing homelessness. We're trying to assistance individuals who are homeless," Gaines said. "And the mode to bash that is to unit these section governments to cleanable up the areas of homeowners and concern owners, but it's besides to guarantee these individuals get the assistance they need."

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"When you spell to downtown Athens now, erstwhile you spell to meal with, you know, your family, you're going to beryllium harassed by stateless people," Gaines said. "And that wasn't the lawsuit adjacent five, six, seven, 8 years ago. Our downtown has changed tremendously."

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"The fig of radical who I speech to that don't adjacent consciousness comfy going downtown Athens for dinner, you know, it's precise unfortunate," Gaines said.