Begway

My husband and I walked along Broadway tonight from Denny to John, a stretch of one and a half blocks.  No less than 11 people asked us for money, even rudely interrupting our conversation and physically stepping in our way.  I haven't seen my husband since Friday morning and we were catching up, so I was a bit irritated.  I usually avoid Broadway so maybe I haven't noticed the increase in beggars but it seems to be getting out of control. Has there recently been a push to shift the homeless out of Downtown, perhaps to hide them from the summer tourists?

I feel bad for the homeless and I do what I can to help by volunteering in the community at a local homeless women shelter, previously volunteered at CAMP (which helps with energy assistance and provides a food bank for those in need), and participating in food drives.  I do not have money lying around to hand out to everyone.  It's frustrating and we will go back to avoiding Broadway in the future.  Is this what we want for our community?  Is there something we can do to help solve the problem other than just shifting the beggers elsewhere?