Wien 1040 (Wieden) Karlsplatz - Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark is a park just outside of the Karlsplatz U-Bahn station. Karlsplatz is a big hangout for herion addicts in Vienna, and they had pretty much taken over parts of the park. Bordering the park are several nice buildings, including the Technical University, Technical High School, Karlskirche, Karlsplatz Museum and the Evangelical School.

A park near the city center, ringed by important educational / cultural buildings, next to a major tranportation facility, overrun by junkies. The junkies often shoot up right out in the open. Sometimes they shoot up in the bathrooms around the park. There's almost always at least one junkie passed out somewhere in the park. Meanwhile, kids are streaming in and out of the Evangelical school, walking through the park on their way to the Karlsplatz station, and home. Not a good situation.

Thus the Schutzzone (protection zone), where the police are allowed to ask anyone to leave the area, without cause. If they don't like the way you look, you can be asked to leave. If you refuse to leave, or return within a certain period of time, you can be arrested.

The Schutzzone was implemented earlier this year, and has been the cause of some controversy. Some decry the trampling of civil liberties, while others applaud the efforts to clean the area up and make the park safe for children and tourists. This zone is meant to be the first of several in Austria.

The Schutzzone most likely hasn't done much good - it's pushed the junkies to another part of the park, and dispersed them a bit more around the city. One of my least favorite things about Vienna is the herion addicts taking their drugs out in the open, for all to see. A difficult problem to solve.

Resselpark Schutzzone - These yellow posters are part of a protest exhibition/action by the Kunsthalle Wien (Vienna Art Hall). The red building directly behind this particular yellow sign is the Evangelische Schule (Evangelical School), which is apparently planning to move to a newly constructed facility outside of the city center.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Karlskirche in the background.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Various artists were asked to come up with ideas for small posters, which were then posted around the park.

Resselpark Schutzzone - On the nod. Sad.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Normal people are trickling back into the park. What exactly are normal people?

Resselpark Schutzzone - Babies in strollers, grandmas, businessmen - are these people normal?

Resselpark Schutzzone - The impressive Karlskirche. I'll do a post dedicated to this Jugendstil church sometime soon.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Dreh di net um... chill out (Don't turn around... chill out)

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - Karlsplatz Museum

Resselpark Schutzzone - The museum is hosting an exhibition on JFK, at the moment.

Resselpark Schutzzone - I like the public signs around Vienna.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Vienna is definitely multi-culti...

Resselpark Schutzzone - The dark tunnel is one of the entrances to the Karlsplatz U-Bahn station.

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - The fuzz makes its presence known (in the station wagon).

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - Karlskirche in the background.

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - Denken Sie an die tollste Frau die Sie kennen (Think about the coolest woman you know). I thought of two women when I saw this sign - my mom is one of them :)

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - This is junkie central, now. The ne'er-do-wells have moved outside of the edge of the protection zone (but still in Resselpark). The guy with his head between his ankles is not looking for his cigarette lighter. He maintained that exact position for more than an hour. I want to make it clear that I do not know for a fact whether any of the people in this photograph are addicted to heroin.

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - Kids on razor scooters, less than 30 meters (100 feet) away from junkie central. Makes me mad.

Resselpark Schutzzone - More pictures of junkie central. Look closely and you'll see the drug deals as they occur, in broad daylight.

Resselpark Schutzzone - 4 young schoolkids on the left, walking through junkie central. Mad.

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - More kids. Kids everywhere.

Resselpark Schutzzone - The gentleman slumped over in his chair appeared to me to be in a bad phase of his life.

Resselpark Schutzzone - He could hardly sit up straight, had either spilled a beer or urinated in his pants, and didn't seem to be in control of his faculties. Again, more kids walking through this human wasteland.

Resselpark Schutzzone

Resselpark Schutzzone - Charming bums. They were having a difficult time standing up while lighting each others' cigarettes.

Resselpark Schutzzone - New bums, old bums.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Bums are on the move, while the wino lies on the ground, grasping for his bottle of wine and shouting all manner of things that I was mostly unable to understand. Between the wino's head and the green bottle of wine is a pile of dog mess.

Resselpark Schutzzone - He practically had to lay his face in the dog mess in order to reach his wine.

Resselpark Schutzzone - A few meters away from the wino stood this group - a gospel quartet, probably from the Evangelical school.

Resselpark Schutzzone - Sad.