Issues of safety, sanitation inspire fences downtown

A wrought iron fence has been erected around the County Administration building to keep vagrants at bay, however, it also surrounds the Downtown Farmer's Garden, preventing access to visitors and passersby, including law student Ted Riquelme, left, and Children's Home Society employee Asa Drake, right, who says she regularly visits the garden, Sunday, December 21, 2014 in Gainesville, Fla. "Seeing the fence around the garden made it a little daunting," said Drake, as she tried to take a peek at the garden through the iron bars. "It makes it feel like we are trespassing."

In response to growing concerns about public health and safety, the county has erected fences at spots around the County Administration Building downtown.

The fences were erected a few months ago after complaints from citizens and county employees regarding issues with the downtown homeless population, said Charlie Jackson, the county's facilities manager.

As part of a comprehensive security update, the county spent $8,830 on the fences, which close off nooks where people can hide, such as the organic garden. There is also a conceptual plan to install security cameras on the exterior of the building.

There were several situations where the homeless have scared or threatened employees coming into or leaving work, Jackson said.

"It's gotten worse in recent weeks," he said.

Though Jackson said safety was a concern, many employees said that the main issue is sanitation.

Brittany Bassler started working for the county tax collector about a year ago. She was told the fences were mainly built to maintain the building, rather than out of a safety concern.

Bassler said she hasn't been directly contacted or harassed by anyone, but she does notice trash and abandoned bags and clothes often near the building.

A few months ago, a bomb squad was called because a bag was left on a transformer; the bag turned out to contain clothing, she said.

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Issues of safety, sanitation inspire fences downtown