Ottawa takes down Jefferson Street bus stop

The old bus stop at the corner of La Salle and Jefferson streets in downtown Ottawa was removed Monday, but not for the reason some people on social media might think.

Ottawa Police Chief Brent Roalson said the covered bench that once served as a waiting spot for the old mini bus that shuttled residents around town and more recently had been used for shelter by two homeless men has been removed because of its deteriorated condition.

There had been a clamor on social media for the past week regarding the two men taking up residence there, with some saying their presence was bad for downtown businesses.

“The bench wasn’t removed because of those guys,” Roalson said. “The city hadn’t been maintaining it since [North Central Area Transit] came into existence and, quite frankly, I wouldn’t have had anybody sit on it. There was a plan already in the works to have it removed. We delayed it as long as we could because there were people there, but it finally got to a point where it was not sound, and someone might have been hurt trying to sit there. It was a structural issue.

“I know it drew a lot of attention and that some people were upset for reasons that were some factual, some not factual, and social media flared it up. It’s unfortunate because people get a pack mentality versus looking at the humanity of it.”

Roalson, who knows the two men by name and is familiar enough with them to say they “have their wits about them,” explained that they both have housing alternatives available to them through local charitable organizations.

They are good friends, however, and choose to stay together, and those resources will take one but not the other for various personal reasons.

“As you know, you can’t force help upon them, and they choose not to take it at this time,” the chief said. “We still have good contact with them and one of their friends who visited them there, and we’re still trying to get them the help that they need. But some of it has to come from them. It’s frustrating.”

At Monday’s Ottawa City Council meeting, Mayor Robb Hasty said the removal of the bus stop “doesn’t help in any way with the problem we have in our community with those who are less fortunate.”

He also commended the police department for its daily assistance connecting them with the help that’s available.

“They’re not being ignored,” Hasty said. “There’s constant contact with these folks who are in need of something more than what we all have.”