Police are responding to frantic calls from residents who report homeless transients in nearby parks, alleyways and backyards — a reaction to the law enforcement initiative aimed at clamping down on crime around The Road Home shelter in downtown Salt Lake City.
Since the Aug. 14 onset of Operation Rio Grande, campers have scattered throughout Salt Lake City and beyond, looking for safe haven even though camping within city limits is illegal.
Rio Grande Street, Pioneer Park and 500 West are now much safer than they were before the law enforcement action, when the area was characterized as a lawless and sometimes violent open-air drug market, complete with discarded needles, garbage and human waste.