JIM SHARPE

Sharper Point: What should Phoenix do with soon-to-be-closed Tent City?

Apr 10, 2017, 4:09 AM | Updated: 11:22 am

It’s official: Maricopa Sheriff Paul Penzone announced last week that the controversial Tent City jail will officially be closed.

While the timeline to have it fully shut down said we’re six months away from the jail be decommissioned, I’m already wondering what Phoenix should do with the facility.

One thing is for sure: We sure don’t need another giant plot of open land. The Valley has plenty of those.

Maybe we can turn it into some sort of Bible vacation school for wayward toddlers. Nothing says learning like temperatures of 100 degrees or higher!

Or maybe some bold TV executive will try to reboot “M*A*S*H.” After all, the show was set in the Korean war, the tents are from the Korean War; it could work!

Oh wait, I’ve got it. What about another community for adults who are 55 or older? It would make a great place to live that active lifestyle!

 

If the city can’t figure out what to do with Tent City, it can always use my final idea: Guest quarters for the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers or a perfect Airbnb for those Seattle Seahawks and Oakland Raiders fans who come to town.

 

Jim Sharpe

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Sharper Point: What should Phoenix do with soon-to-be-closed Tent City?