Daily Lobo new mexico
The Independent Student Voice of UNM since 1895
friday January 30, 2015 | Volume 119 | Issue 92
Tent City residents ordered to break camp By Matthew Reisen The intersection of Iron Street and First Street now goes by an unofficial name — “Tent City” — due to the substantial homeless population that camps beside the rail yard fence. Neighboring homes and businesses have called upon the city of Albuquerque to help with the situation, relying on charitable organizations like St. Martin’s Hospitality Center to relocate and assist those who live on the small stretch of sidewalk. The city of Albuquerque will soon begin the process of relocating the residents of the encampment, using police to forcibly remove anyone unwilling to leave, and have social workers and charities try to connect them to resources and more permanent indoor shelters. The encampment itself is part community, part skid row, generating numerous complaints from businesses and residents in the area about a spectrum of illegal activity. One of the groups trying to assist the homeless population there is St. Martin’s, a Christian charity that runs a shelter, provides free meals and helps to connect people to healthcare and other services. On two recent trips to Tent City, individuals were seen selling jewelry and other goods, including what appeared to be a variety of drugs. Several cars, one seen several times on the same day, drove up to the camp,
stopped outside, and Tent City residents were seen approaching the car’s windows and possibly engaging in transactions. Attempts to reach Albuquerque police or city officials to confirm the extent of illegal activity were unsuccessful. Among the residents is some sense of community and camaraderie, however, with people helping each other and sharing meals, water and clothing. The city of Albuquerque has provided them with a portable toilet, after receiving complaints about human waste scattered around the area. Those residing in Tent City also declined to speak on record. Vicky Palmer, associate executive director at St. Martin’s, said addressing the needs of local housed people along with helping to relocate the residents of Tent City is easier said than done. “I think it’s a really tough balancing act with the city because you want to make all of your citizens happy, and homeless people are part of those citizens. I think our city has been trying really hard to find that good balance.” Palmer said, “Not all homeless folks like shelters, and that’s why they may possibly end up in a tent versus a shelter, even if there are available spots. Some folks have mental illness, anxiety disorders, and that’s not a real good spot for them.” Much of the homeless population used to congregate underneath
Sergio Jiménez / Daily Lobo / @SXfoto
David Israel smokes at Tent City on Thursday afternoon. Tent City is the unofficial name for the homeless population camp that has sprung up at the intersection of Iron Street and First Street near the rail yards.
overpasses in the warmer months, she said, but once it got cold the tents went up — making the population much more visible to neighbors. St. Martin’s has been providing services at First and Iron for about a year now, utilizing their own outreach group to assist and offer services to
those in need, she said. Those living in the area of Tent City are accustomed to the outreach team from St. Martin’s, and most of the population is open to working with those outreach members, Palmer said. “We know them really well; all
of our outreach folks are intimately involved with each of the folks in the tents and are actively helping them to relocate and to find services as well as housing,” she said. “We are absolutely taking a multi-dimensional approach
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Tent City page 2
New soccer coach trained kids, Olympians By Thomas Romero-Salas
It’s one extreme to the next for Heather Dyche. After years of working at the club and Olympic level, Dyche will be moving into collegiate ranks following her introduction as the new head coach of the New Mexico women’s soccer program on Thursday. Dyche, an Albuquerque native, will become the fourth head coach in the history of the program, and this will be her first head coaching position at the collegiate level. “The appealing part to me was that it was the University of New Mexico,” she said. “I care about this state and I care about this program.” Junior defender Olivia Ferrier said she believes Dyche will be a good fit for UNM. “I’m excited, and I think I can speak for the whole team when I say that,” Ferrier said. “It’s going to be different because we’ve never gone through anything like this before, but sometimes I think that change is the best thing for us.” During her career as a soccer player, Dyche played at Eldorado high school and was a four-year All-
State defender. She participated at Nebraska during her freshman year of college then transferred to Florida State, playing there from 1998-2001. Her résumé of soccer experience is a long one. Some of the notable stops in her career include: being a staff member with the United U.S. Soccer Federation, instructing USSF B- and USSF C-licensed national coaching schools and serving as an assistant coach for the United States Youth National U14 Girls program. Dyche has also coached teams at Olympic Development Interregional events and searches for top players in the region to compete in the Olympic Development Program Regional Team. However, despite her range of experience as a soccer coach, Dyche never received any offers to become a Division I coach. She received several offers to become an assistant, but didn’t have any interest. “Of all the other collegiate opportunities, this one meant the most to me,” she said. “I want to be here. I want to be in Albuquerque.” New Mexico Vice President for Athletics Paul Krebs said several Division I head coaches and top-
25 assistants showed interest in the job. He said that among the reasons they chose Dyche was how wellconnected she is around the nation and how much experience she has. “The things that jumped out at me were her vast experience as a player and as a coach at the club level,” Krebs said. With regard to her connections, Dyche said she thinks one day she’ll be able to recruit some of the top national and regional players in the country. She added that eight players will sign national letters of intent to play at UNM next week. “I think, if we do things right, (UNM will) be a place where national players want to come,” Dyche said. “The players that we have here are outstanding. To me, it’s highlighting a good group of players with national players and regional players.” Dyche replaces former head coach Kit Vela, whose contract was not renewed after 14 seasons with UNM and a 10-6-2 record in 2014. Before last season began, the women’s program was involved in a hazing incident that resulted in the Lobos’ first game at Texas Tech being cancelled. Vela was also suspended for one week
dress clothes to the Roundhouse to show their support for the nationwide event. The campaign is a collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches to raise awareness about the fight against cancer, communicate the importance of good nutrition and exercise and
promote the ACS, according to their website. During this week, basketball coaches and their staff wore sneakers with their suits while coaching games. “The sneakers worn with suits are the symbolism used for TV games to help with national exposure,” said Matt Ensor, assistant communications director for men’s basketball. “The initiative is done by coaching
Sergio Jiménez / Daily Lobo / @SXfoto
Heather Dyche speaks to the media after being announced as the new head coach for Lobo women’s soccer on Thursday afternoon. Dyche is the fourth head coach in the history of the women’s soccer program.
without pay. An internal investigation performed by UNM showed that underclassmen were humiliated by various means. The hazing also resulted in two players being hospitalized for excessive alcohol consumption. Krebs said he felt UNM’s full
potential wasn’t being reached under Vela. “When we made the decision to change coaches last November, one of the things that I certainly tried to mention is my belief that
staffs throughout the country at all levels (NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III and NAIA).” Fundraising for the American Cancer Society through the Coaches vs. Cancer program is done during other events as well, including galas and golf tournaments. UNM’s Coaches vs. Cancer program has been active since 2005 and has raised more than
$1 million to benefit the ACS, according to the ACS website. Neal is an active member of the program. Among other initiatives, he participates in a golf tournament hosted by Lon Kruger, the University of Oklahoma’s head basketball coach, in Las Vegas every summer, Ensor said.
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Dyche page 2
Sneakers suit VIPs’ call for cancer awareness By Marielle Dent
On Monday New Mexico legislators joined with UNM men’s basketball coach Craig Neal to support “Coaches vs. Cancer Suits and Sneakers Week,” an American Cancer Society awareness campaign. Gov. Susana Martinez and state lawmakers wore sneakers with their
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Sneakers page 2