Bloomington federal money should go to poor

In response to Paige Ingram's report on the misallocation of federal dollars to Bloomington ("Low-Income students bring city big bucks," Sept. 28) and Kristi Oloffson's article on the Shalom Center homeless shelter ("Local homeless shelter still has no place to go," Sept. 29):\nIf Bloomington really wants to distinguish itself as a city that cares for the poor and homeless, they should decline these grants so that they can be given to cities that really need them, cities not flushed with future middle-class college graduates. While there is no denying that homelessness and poverty are present in Bloomington, the fact that the city is using some of the grant money for city beautification is sad. The noble act of giving up the money allocated to Bloomington could set an example for the other cities that are in a similar situation. It is a sad state of affairs when money allocated to the poor does not get there because of constituent politics. If that is out of the question, the money should be spent entirely on the poor in Bloomington. The problems that the Shalom Community Center faces could easily be improved upon in a city-run homeless shelter. The fact that the homeless and impoverished have very little political influence should encourage the city government to reach out to and fund programs that benefit them. After all, this is their city; most of us students are just visiting.