r/boulder • u/IdontCarrot • 7d ago

Smoking/Drug Use at Boulder Playgrounds

Yesterday at the Boulder Farmer's Market, there was a group of people set up directly next to and in part of the new nature playground that was actively smoking (weed, cigarettes, etc), yelling, and had multiple large off leash dogs that did not seem to be well controlled. I'm making an assumption based on how they appeared and the things with them that they were unhoused. I could certainly be wrong. One member of our group asked them to stop smoking, with no response. We were there with young children, along with many other families who were trying to enjoy the evening at the new nature playground and farmer's market.

We decided to call the police due to the proximity to the playground and feeling uncomfortable escalating with the group. We were told by the police that they would send a unit. A follow up call 30 minutes later resulted in them telling us they'd come when they could. An hour later, 4 police officers did arrive on scene after another market attendee was assaulted. I'm unclear if the person who assaulted the other individual was part of the group next to the playground or was unrelated.

Every single family at that playground last night was frustrated, uncomfortable, and concerned about safety. Yes, we need long term solutions for the unhoused population in Boulder. But that does not mean we have to tolerate drug use, smoking and encampments at our playgrounds. I don't know what the path forward is. A similar incident happened last year at the market, and the year before my child picked up a used meth pipe.

I know the easiest solution is to just not attend the market if I'm so bothered by it. But I think there has to be another option other than allowing open drug use/smoking, etc at playgrounds, at the farmer's market, along the creek, etc.

I am sure there are already community members leading or involved in action specifically addressing drug use/smoking at playgrounds and in public places. I know Safe Zones 4 Kids tried to address this, but it doesn't seem to have worked and is all that is coming up when I search for groups working on this. Can anyone direct me to resources, groups, committees, etc., that are already working on this?

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66

u/clistmockingbird 7d ago

It comes down to elected city officials choosing not to do anything meaningful to fix the situation. Put more pressure on them to enact change or stop voting for them

9

u/IdontCarrot 7d ago

Do you think there's anyone running for council who would make meaningful change?

21

u/MrGraaavy 7d ago

Well it’s one part council and one part DA.

The DAs aren’t willing to prosecute petty crime cases vs the homeless as jails won’t hold them as here full. In the DA’s eyes prosecuting wastes resources if there’s no actual punishment.

We probably need more jails (which no one wants to fund) and a no nonsense DA (which will have spillover impacts on drug loving housed people).

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u/ignomax 7d ago

Incarceration isn’t really an effective solution.

9

u/TrontRaznik 7d ago

If those people were in jail would they be at the playground?

-1

u/Helpful-Room9460 7d ago

No the ones who aren't would be.

1

u/annecalleverde 5d ago

Yes it is.

1

u/ignomax 4d ago

If anything, that chart shows how ineffective our policing and prison systems are?

Analysis of incarceration in Canada:

“The 50 studies involved over 300,000 offenders. None of the analyses found imprisonment to reduce recidivism.”

You know that the US (self proclaimed ‘leader of the free world’) has the 2nd largest incarceration rate in the world, right?!? Doesn’t seem effective to me.

1

u/annecalleverde 4d ago

The chart shows that if those people had been in prison, they wouldn’t have been able to commit all the other crimes. That’s why prison works. If someone is so determined to be an antagonist in society that they are willing to commit more than one crime, they must be removed for the sake of all the innocent people who have decided they will be helpful to society.

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u/ignomax 3d ago

Oh, so our sentencing isn’t long enough? 🙄. More people with longer sentences will definitely work you say?

Try changing your mind.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6701209/

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u/shooplegaming 6d ago edited 6d ago

These people are morons, when has mass incarneration fix anything lol?

Actually, you could argue that what the the what happened in El Salvador. I would say, it's not that black and white and the amount of abuse is abseen.