Shuttered buildings still an eyesore, public safety problem in Taos
Taos is filled with abandoned buildings, which become both public blights and unofficial, illegal shelters for the county’s sizable homeless population. The continued occupation of these structures by the homeless has led to concern among property owners, who have employed the services of local law enforcement to do routine checks, pulling away this limited resource from other calls.
Although lacking the manpower to do nightly checks, Taos Police Chief John Wentz said his officers make a point to monitor shuttered buildings when there are signs of activity around and inside of them. Usually, activity is related to transient homeless populations.
In June, for example, the body of Chad Redhouse was found in the Sun God Lodge, a site of recurring suspicious activity since the motel shuttered several years ago. According to Wentz, the Sun God Lodge is one of roughly 20 properties law enforcement currently monitors.
However, Wentz said, Taos’ high concentration of homeless individuals has become overwhelming, which leads to law enforcement requesting the assistance of property owners to help keep their buildings secure.
“It comes almost to the point where it’s borderline unmanageable because there’s so much of it,” Wentz said about homeless individuals setting up camp on other peoples’ properties.
According to Wentz, these populations often leave behind garbage and proof of habitation, like bivouacs or fires. Due to the shortage of hands on deck at Taos Police Department, Wentz will often advise property owners of preventive tactics, like using cameras and fencing to ward off potential trespassers.
Since monitoring property is often in response to homeless trespassers, when they’re removed from one location, they tend to go somewhere else. According to Wentz, it’s like “chasing your tail.”
In order to have a property surveilled, Wentz said they might reach out to property owners if transient activity is high, making them aware that they can send officers to sweep the property.
“I think we have a duty when it gets into the public safety exception, that if we see a problem, I don’t think we’re violating any laws to go in and check on the problem,” Wentz said. “But once we make that first step, now it’s time to reach out to the owner and try to put that responsibility back on them. It’s your property — take care of it.”