Amid Branson's Biggest Tourism Boom Ever, Homelessness Among Workers Surges

http://kcur.org/post/amid-branson-s-biggest-tourism-boom-ever-homelessness-among-workers-surges#stream/0

"As a tourist destination, Branson runs on annual cycles of boom and bust. In the summer, the hotels, restaurants and theaters can’t find enough people to fill all their low-wage job openings. But in the fall, tourism starts to dry up.

“When September comes and they’re laid off, even two people with kids don’t have enough to live on so they end up in a hotel,” Perry says.

By mid-winter, the unemployment rate exceeds three or four times the state average. With dwindling bank accounts and few options for low-cost housing, many workers wind up living hand-to-mouth in motels until the next tourist season.

“You get stuck in like this big whirlwind that’s going down the toilet,” Perry says. “And it’s just sucking you down.”"