By Frank Wiley
St. Louis (KSDK) -- St. Louis streets are home to more than 1,300 people on any given day. Just north of the Gateway Arch are a number of people, huddled in tents, adding to those numbers.
Littered with tents, just west of the flood wall, separating the Mississippi from the city, sits a group of people who prefer living on the streets over housing.
"I've been here since the first of April," said Ron Benson.
Benson is among a population at Hopeville suffering from the worst of the worst: alcoholism, drug abuse, and mental illness.
Benson won't say what brought him to Hopeville, but refusal to conform is what keeps him there.
A recent fatal stabbing is pushing the city to break up the encampment.
"You got more crime going on in these other neighborhoods, where you've got two or three killings a night, and they want to come down here and harass us over one," asks Benson.
"This is not a humane way to live," said Bill Siedoff.
Bill Siedoff says plans have been in the works for months. He runs St. Louis' Human Services Department.
Most of these folks once lived in abandoned railroad tunnel, downtown, that was being demolished. Hopeville is where they settled.
Now the alternative is an old building, in the 5000 block of Page, that has been gutted and refurbished with 23 apartments. It's a $5-million project funded by tax credits and private donations. Francie Broderick says it'll eventually pay for itself.
"Good safe housing reduces healthcare costs, reduces visits to emergency rooms, reduces encounters with law enforcement," said Broderick.
She works for Places for People, the organization looks to open several living quarters across the city, and equip residents with counselors on-site.
Even so, it's not appealing to a group of people use to living without rules.
"There is a real comfort in being in a place you know," said Dr. Barry Hong, a psychologist with Washington University.
The city calls the problem manageable. Officials hope to have everyone out of Hopeville by the end of the summer. The apartments are expected to be finished in September.