San Joaquin County is moving toward establishing a secure “safe-camping” area for the homeless with basic services.

It is being done in tandem with the adoption of an anti-camping ordinance similar to what Manteca has adopted.
Manteca, meanwhile, is headed to court today to prosecute 60 cases involving quality of life crimes committed by the homeless ranging from illegal camping to shopping cart pilfering.

Given homeless shelters and outreach efforts to try and get the homeless off the streets, the county pursuing a safe camping area is a significant development.

“It’s a part of the puzzle,” said Tom Patti who represents Manteca north of Yosemite Avenue, Lathrop, the Delta region and parts of northwest Stockton on the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors.

Patti noted it would provide law enforcement four options.

*The ability to move the homeless into shelters where they can access help and services.

*Working with community outreach groups to help reunite the homeless with families willing to take them in.

*Directing those that don’t want to go to a shelter — or if there isn’t space — to go to the safe camping area.

*If that fails, officers won’t just be able to cite and/or arrest the homeless that refuse to cease illegal camping. They will be able to keep constant pressure on the homeless.

The proposed county ordinance change would prohibit camping on public property.

It would also prohibit people sleeping in their car for more than an hour. Law enforcement would have the discretion to allow occupants of cars to rest for safety purposes. 

The proposed amendments would specifically prohibit erecting a tent or other form of shelter for the purpose of sleeping, arranging bedding for the purpose of sleeping, and using a standing or parked vehicle for the purpose of sleeping if done so beyond 60 minutes or within 300 feet of any previous stopping point in a 24-hour period.

The current version of the county ordinance allows camping on public property between the hours of 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. 

Manteca adopted an ordinance that outlawed all camping on public property in 2018.

The city wasn’t weren’t able to enforce it — except at a few specific carve outs such as the Manteca Transit Center and the Manteca Veterans Center — due to court rulings.

The courts essentially said anti-camping ordinances couldn’t be enforced if there weren’t available shelter beds in a community.

The Supreme Court earlier this summer handed down a decision allowing anti-camping laws to be enforced regardless of the availability of shelters.

Manteca — which has to abide by a settlement agreement in 2017 that avoided a class action lawsuit filed by three homeless individuals that could have cost the city millions — allows sleeping in public places between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. unless otherwise posted such as parks.

Parks are closed overnight to everyone, regardless of their shelter status.

And when they sleep they can’t impede others. Adequate passage for Americans with Disabilities compliance is used as the yardstick which means sleeping on sidewalks is basically illegal in residential neighborhoods where sidewalks aren’t wide enough to accommodate a handicapped person in a wheelchair passing someone who is asleep.

Other cities, even with the most recent high court decision, do the same thing.

That assures they don’t essentially fall into the trap of making being homeless a de facto crime given other court decisions have made it clear a homeless person needing to sleep can’t essentially be treated as such.

Sleeping is not camping.

Manteca’s illegal camping ordinance defines “camp” as meaning to place, pitch or occupy camp facilities; to live temporarily in a camp facility or outdoors; to use camp paraphernalia.

“Camping facilities” include, but are not limited to, tents, huts, vehicles, vehicle camping outfits or temporary shelter.

As far as "camp paraphernalia", Manteca defines it to include, but not limited to, bedrolls, tarpaulins, cots, beds, sleeping bags, hammocks or cooking facilities and similar equipment.

Similar language is included in the county ordinance.

“It applies to tents, tarps, or pallet condos,” Patti said.

The supervisor stressed the county and cities are trying to pursue a consistent approach to homeless issues from making services available and encampment eradication to enforcement

Patti said the 60 minute, 300-foot rule in terms of how long someone can erect a temporary shelter to sleep and how far they have to move it to sleep again in county jurisdiction without violating the ordinance is designed to prevent encampments from taking root.

Once they do, agencies need to go through a notification process as well as clear them out.

Patti said the county’s strategy is once they clean up an encampment is not to let it the area it is located revert back to such a use. The proposed ordinance chance on the county level will allow that to happen.

Patti lauded Manteca’s effort noting it is serving as a model for other jurisdictions.

He said it was “incredible” the job the city has done through the effort led by community resource officer Mike Kelly who Patti said over the past eight years or so has managed to get over 400 people off the streets and either reunited with relatives or into diversion programs.

“Some of them do end up back on the street,” Patti said. “But that doesn’t take away from the job Manteca has done.”

As part of the staff report for the supervisors, Sheriff Patrick Withrow noted amendments to the county ordinance will allow deputies to more effectively and judiciously enforce restrictions against camping on public property within the county.

The objective of the amendment is to further define, restrict, and deter illegal camping activity on public property within San Joaquin County, thereby enhancing public health, enjoyment of public property, and public safety.

The Sheriff indicated that he would be sharing this proposed ordinance with other local law enforcement partners to allow for continuity of enforcement across jurisdictions.

“After the recent Supreme Court decision, our Board pledged to work with our local law enforcement to clean up and reclaim public spaces in San Joaquin County,” commented Board Chairman Miguel Villapudua.

“This ordinance is one piece of that puzzle to allow our families to once again safely use parks and public facilities We are providing the services that people need at local shelters and through the behavioral health department”

“This revised no camping ordinance is an essential tool for law enforcement and our non-profit partners to encourage the unsheltered and incentivize using those resources, getting help to live healthy and productive lives.”

The supervisors  will consider final adoption of the changes at the next meeting on Sept. 24.

If approved, the ordinance would go into effect 30 days after adoption.
 

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecbulletin.com