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'Those with power need to listen' | Okolona community concerned about squatters

As homeless people get pushed out from downtown, they are living in empty shopping centers and leaving trash.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Margie Yusk's reality every day is a mirror of the growing homeless problem in our city. She lives in Okolona, right across from the Okolona shopping center off of Preston and Outerloop. As downtown homeless camps have been removed, those people have nowhere to go, leaving them to find shelter further south.

"I walk out of my front door that's what I see. People have been breaking into the buildings, living behind the buildings. I'd say three weeks it's gotten to where there's about fifteen to twenty people that have been living over there."

It wasn't until recently, that it started to spiral. Margie realized things were getting worse when the squatters held a yard sale in the middle of the Okolona shopping center and things in her dumpster were being sold. She found a utility bill with her name on it and knew who took her items.

It's a strip mall that's mostly vacant. It's all boarded up except for a barbershop.

"This was a very prime location and it's very sad to see something like this fall down to what it's become,"  Jeff Gill, the founder of Hip Hop Cares and an avid homeless advocate, said. He says it was a vital area when businesses were booming.

That very area is almost unrecognizable than the hot spot it once was just steps from Margie's house; it's now also a home for the homeless.

"This spot as long as it sits empty it's going to be a place where people come because there is an awning and it can keep you from the elements and it's not being utilized," Gill said.

As a local advocate and fixer, hundreds of Facebook messages caught Jeff Gill's attention. He went out there a few days ago to clean up the property that looked much worse. He said the most frustrating part is the owner has neglected his own property and has chosen not to respond to upset community members.

People in the neighborhood are also calling for action from Madonna Flood, the metro council member that represents parts of Okolona.

But Food tells WHAS11 "as of just a few days ago the property owner has been cited and has until August 12 to clean up. Until then, her hands are tied and must work in the confines of the law."

Camps in downtown are still under scrutiny.

An email was sent Tuesday morning that the homeless camp under the Caldwell Street overpass will now be given 21 days to clear out.

Jeff said another closing will add to the homeless problem, not solve it.

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