Visitors to the City of Hamilton are being harassed by a rising number of vagrants, a meeting heard last night.Corporation of Hamilton Deputy Mayor Glen Smith told a town-hall meeting that begging on the streets had become a serious concern and needed to be quickly addressed.“Everyone who resides in or visits the City of Hamilton should be able to go about their business feeling safe at all times,” he said. “Unfortunately, vagrancy is on the increase, perhaps due to the economic times.“Constituents are saying they are seeing an increased number of vagrants. This is a particular concern for women and children who can feel threatened.“We have heard the same from members of our restaurant sector, who tell us that vagrants are sitting outside restaurants and shops harassing patrons.”Mr Smith, chairman of the Corporation's infrastructure committee, said on a recent jog he counted 15 people sleeping in doorways. “The issue has become so widespread that I fear we are beginning to accept it as being normal.”He said certain areas, such as the ferry terminal, City Hall and the parks, attracted homeless people and that some were harassing citizens and “causing distress to visitors to the Island”.He claimed “easy access” to alcohol was exacerbating the problem and that liquor licences should not to be given to premises selling miniature bottles of spirits and individual cans and bottles of beer.“It's time to act in order to address this issue,” the Deputy Mayor and Alderman told the meeting at Hamilton Seventh-day Adventist Church.“We want to clarify that it's not a Corporation of Hamilton problem. It's everybody's problem.”Mr Smith said Government should take the lead to address the social issues behind the problem, with City Hall willing to play a supportive role.He suggested a facility was needed where the homeless could get food, a shower and other help and that Ministry of Health officials and police should be given power to take vagrants to the Mid-Atlantic Wellness Institute for assessment.“This is a social problem that's not isolated to the City of Hamilton but is an Island-wide issue.”Bermuda Economic Development Corporation business development manager Roxanne Christopher asked whether the Corporation was prepared to organise an initiative to tackle the “social component” of the problem.Mayor Charles Gosling said City Hall was limited in the functions it could perform, as per the Municipalities Act.“It would not be efficient on our part to try to duplicate the job the Government does,” he said. “We are looking to partner.”The Mayor added that the Corporation owned properties it was willing to allow to be used as facilities for the homeless.A business owner from Court Street said she was thankful for the vagrants, as they were the first to help wash her windows and unload heavy boxes from trucks.Police Inspector Calvin Smith told the audience of about 70 people that the vagrancy issue was not in the “top ten priorities” of Bermuda Police Service.But he said police would be objecting to liquor licences for outlets selling miniatures and individual beers.“We will continue with our efforts with the homeless,” said the officer. “We find ourselves somewhat powerless and ineffective to deal with it from enforcement point of view.“We criminalise people if we put them before the courts. The courts have made clear it's a social problem.”The meeting also heard that teenagers drinking alcohol and engaged in antisocial behaviour were becoming a problem in the city's parks. Insp Smith said: “That's another concern for us, a major concern.”Useful websites: www.cityhall.bm, www.bps.bm.