Once the homeless camps in Central Arkansas were wiped away, people were left wondering where to go

Little Rock, Arkansas – The increasing number of homeless people in central Arkansas is a story we’ve been monitoring since last year. Many camps in Little Rock and North Little Rock were dispersed from the metro area in November.

Benton police officers cleared up what they claimed were abandoned homeless camps from the city over the weekend.

In order to clean up right-of-way areas, the Arkansas Department of Transportation once more removed homeless encampments from locations close to interstates.

There have been concerns regarding when we will have actual solutions to this issue because there is little to no space available for our displaced population.

An ARDOT representative told us that they offered a week’s warning to people in the neighborhood. Yet according to Caleb Alexander-Mckinzie, a volunteer with The Van, not everyone in the camps may have received the notifications.

“These folks may have been in the hospital for a week. They may have gotten a hotel for a week. They may not have been back to that site. They may have no idea this is happening,” said Mckinzie.

If such were the case, according to Mckinzie, several essential items could be misplaced, including clothing, birth certificates, social security cards, hygiene products, and clothing.

There are currently little to no options for where a person can go because shelters are so full.

“That’s their question is where do I go and we can’t provide them an answer,” Mckinzie described.

While there aren’t many options available right now, more are on the way.

Little Rock and Pulaski County are building small home communities that will provide safe housing for hundreds of individuals.

The Salvation Army also plans to grow by constructing a new shelter with 150–200 additional beds.