After nearly two-month delay, judge allows Oakland to remove large homeless camp The Encampment Management Team is responsible for implementing the Encampment Management Policy and directing coordination across city departments. Previously, she covered breaking news and crime for The Chronicle. Credit: Darwin BondGraham. Oaklands biggest homeless encampment could massively shrink with planned sweep of 200 people, Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area. We do need permanent supportive housing and where is it? That injunction was dissolved in phases, beginning in August of 2022, giving residents more time to find other alternatives. Oakland shut down a portion of its largest homeless encampment, starting the daunting work of clearing a massive, sprawling camp that has been plagued by fires as the city prepares to. Thursday evening, representatives from the city of Oakland submitted a plan for a phased closure of the site, beginning at its northernmost edge, where a fire on July 11 sent plumes of black smoke onto the 880 overpass. Several non-emergency systems including phone lines within the City of Oakland are currently impacted or offline. It dissolves a restraining order that previously halted Caltrans plans to clear the camp and allows the city to begin a phased closure of the encampment. The new report, completed by City Auditor Courtney Ruby, found that the EMT was "overwhelmed by the undertaking of closing and cleaning encampments throughout Oakland." Ruby found that Oakland spent $12.6 million on tasks related to encampments over the past two years, and roughly $1,500 an hour on camp closures and cleanings. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group), OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: Community members watch as workers clear a section of the Wood Street homeless encampment near an area known as Cob on Wood on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Oakland, Calif. Caltrans is overseeing the cleanup of its property along Wood Street. Theo Cedar Jones (third from right) and other residents of the Wood Street encampment proposed self-governing during a meeting with Oakland staff in July. Neighbors tell Da Lin the looming closure is long overdue. by Natalie Orenstein March 25, 2021. Wood Street encampment resident Theo Cedar Jones plays guitar. Forcing Californians into mental health treatment would get easier with proposed legislation Caltrans says it's closing Oakland's Wood Street homeless encampment because of safety concerns. Californias stormy weather is having an unusual effect on S.F. The order is the latest in a long-running dispute over a homeless camp, who expressed concern about the short notice and lack of shelter options, Activist Judy Heumann led a reimagining of what it means to be disabled, How this year's Selma Bridge Crossing could mark a community renaissance, Storms across the U.S. cause deaths and power outages, Russia's foreign minister gets laughed at over Ukraine remarks at a global conference. The audit also analyzed the citys ability to respond when its unhoused communities need help. The news of the clearing comes after a two-alarm fire broke out Monday at the site, which dozens of blazes have torn through over the past year. Repairing damage to lighting at Union Point Park is expected to cost another $500,000, not including additional repairs that must be done to bathrooms, landscaping, benches and other amenities. Local News | Specifically, the audit found the City lacked an effective strategy for dealing with the growth in encampments and did not provide sufficient policy direction or adequate funding at the onset of this crisis, the letter continued. Since the policy has gone into effect, two Oakland nonprofits have burned as a result of fires started in areas where the city knew there to be encampments. In a lawsuit filed this week, grassroots group Neighbors. Forcing Californians into mental health treatment would get easier with proposed legislation The report lays out 26 recommendations, all of which the city has committed to following, according to the auditors office. The Oakland city auditor in April released a report that highlighted a litany of problems that plague the city's estimated 140 homeless communities, including: 1,599 interventions for "hygiene . OAKLAND Nearly a month after a federal court barred Oakland from clearing one of its most prominent homeless encampments, the judge in the case has determined the city has enough shelter beds for the displaced residents and can proceed with the removal. That site reportedly contained a communal area used to organize donations and cook group meals several nights a week as well as "pop-up clinics, regular open mics, and other community town hall events.". The action will set in motion the eviction of several dozen people living on a vacant, city-owned lot off Wood Street in West Oakland . The encampment is one of the largest in the city and has been plagued with problems such as illegal dumping and fires for years. Nobody who lived in the homeless camp on Wood Street in Oakland was surprised when police cars and helmeted motorcycle officers started driving up and down the block early on a Tuesday. And where do we go? street outreach, homeless shelters, transitional housing, housing exits, and permanent supportive housing as needed. The judge quickly sided with the homeless residents, and issued a temporary order barring the city from clearing the camp at least until the city could prove it had enough shelter beds for everyone displaced. Multiple fires have erupted at the city's largest homeless encampment, which. Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years Sign up for our daily newsletter. For now, it appears that camp residents will have at least another long weekend at the park before the standoff continues. Marisa Kendall is a housing reporter for the Bay Area News Group who covers homelessness for The Mercury News and East Bay Times. In May, city officials told The Chronicle that they dont have enough shelter beds to offer to everyone at Wood Street. Review and respond annually to the City's Homeless Encampment Policy and the Permanent Access to Housing Path Plan which shall be presented to the Commission, as well as hear reports on the housing, programs, and services for persons experiencing homelessness in the City including, but not limited to. But Oakland only has 598-city-funded, year-round shelter beds and an estimated homeless population of 4,000 as of 2019 with nearly 80% of those unsheltered. Heres where California reservoir levels stand after this weeks rains. She started her journalism career reporting on crime and breaking news for The News-Press in Southwest Florida. The city may now post notices of the closure and shall give individuals at the encampment at least seven days notice before the closure begins, Orrick wrote. Its unclear whether residents will be open to moving to a city-sanctioned site. After nearly two-month delay, judge allows, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Bay Area weather: After thunderstorms and hail, snow could be on the way this weekend, After nearly two-month delay, judge allows Oakland to remove large homeless camp, Housing proposal for unhoused leaves Santa Clara residents sharply divided, Forcing Californians into mental health treatment would get easier with proposed legislation, Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years. The residents would have a social contract, love thy neighbor and do no harm, Jones said. On Tuesday, homeless people in Echo Park were faced with a decision as an imminent city closure drew near. OAKLAND -- The biggest homeless encampment in Oakland will soon be shut down. But those plans were slow in coming. Designate high-sensitivity areas, where unmanaged encampments are presumed to cause unreasonably high levels of health and safety impacts due to the nature of the location; Designate low-sensitivity areas, where enforcement will not be prioritized. He dissolved the TRO immediately, conditioned on the city's representations that there would be sufficient shelter options for the displaced residents. Related Articles The city did not immediately return a request for comment. She previously covered startups and venture capital for the Bay Area News Group and prior to that court cases for The Recorder in San Francisco. Caltrans spokesperson Rocquel Johnson said the agency plans to eventually completely close the parts of the encampment that are under freeway overpasses and work to relocate people to safer conditions.. He and the others had lived in four old buses one of which was destroyed during the move and a van. We are ready to scale up for reductions in homelessness, though new state and federal funds and more intergovernmental coordination are needed. The plaintiffs asked that the eviction be enjoined because of a lack of shelter beds, heavy winter rains, and the continued prevalence of Covid and other viruses. Fed up with homeless encampments that have taken over streets, parks and open spaces, a group of Oakland residents is suing the city. March 23, 2021 6:54 PM PT. Oakland has responded to the crisis level surge in homelessness with emergency measures like community cabins. A separate request earlier this month to halt Oakland workers from clearing parts of the encampment on land it owns was denied. The man, who was not identified, was taken into custody. Under these circumstances, the judge found that the standards for the TRO were no longer met. Aric Crabb has been a staff photographer at the Bay Area News Group since 1998. A federal judge on Friday refused to let Caltrans "wash their hands" of people living in a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland by clearing them from it. This is our home.. Their model is wrong, he said. By City News Service on . Housing proposal for unhoused leaves Santa Clara residents sharply divided The result is a shuffling with no long-term strategy on how to get people into more permanent, supportive housing. Staff Attorneys will primarily . Housing | (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group), OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: Workers take a break during a partial clearing of the Wood Street homeless encampment on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Oakland, Calif. Caltrans is overseeing the cleanup of its property along Wood Street. Both the city and the camps residents have different ideas for what the future should be for the land and the people who live there. Wood Street encampment resident Theo Cedar Jones points to a map of the area hes living near at the Wood Street encampment on April 29, 2022 in Oakland, California.on Friday. To reduce homelessness, we must slow its growth and keep more people in their homes. Although the first phase includes offers of temporary shelter, Orrick said subsequent phases could continue whether or not shelter was available. He says Caltrans has forced him to move several times. Meanwhile, Council Member Carroll Fife, who represents the district that includes the Wood Street encampment, has directed the city administration to study creating an emergency shelter for 1,000 people on a section of the former Oakland Army Base. Encampment Management is necessary to address the emergency needs of our unhoused residents, and serves as one part of the Citys overall response to prevent, stabilize and house our community. You can report an encampment at the following locations: Bridges Highways Parks or playgrounds Outside of residential and commercial buildings Roadway tunnels Streets and sidewalks Subway stations Report an encampment. Raised eyebrows. To report an encampment online, please scan the QR code below to access the Reporting Tool page: Or go to the Reporting Tool website: https://reportencampments.tucsonaz.gov/ To report an encampment by phone, please call the City of Tucson Resource Line: (520) 791-2540 Initiation of Protocol Sarah Ravani covers Oakland and the East Bay at The San Francisco Chronicle. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. Tuesday at 3:07 PM. A day later, tensions escalated when witnesses said Oakland police tased an encampment resident. Recommendations from the Commission on how to prioritize the allocation of funds in accordance with the requirements of this Chapter, including for: services and programs for homeless people, reduction of homelessness, and supporting the provision of affordable housing to households qualifying as at least low-income households (those at 55% AMI or below). City staff were there to clear out residents from the northern part of the encampment, near the city-sanctioned RV safe parking site. A United Nations report from 2018, for example, stated that a U.N. investigator witnessed officials "attempting to discourage residents from remaining in informal settlements or encampments by denying access to water, sanitation and health services and other basic necessities, [which] constitutes cruel and inhuman treatment and is a . Determine findings that will prompt EMT intervention; Provide guidance on addressing unreasonable health and safety risks, promoting voluntary compliance, and strategies to address non-compliance. Skinny lives at 37MLK, the homeless encampment in Oakland, California, that was created by community organizers taking over a vacant lot. And it was clear at the hearing that the city, county and Caltrans still had not worked out a plan for a number of different issues related to the encampment's closure, including who would do the outreach to residents and where residents' belongings would be kept. Caltrans has completed much smaller sweeps in the past. Narcan spray and other sanitary products can be seen on a book shelf at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, May 2, 2022. As he drove past the intersection of 21st and E streets in Northwest Washington, a 68-year-old man peered through the window, struck by an encampment of homeless people here that grew from 10 . Call Taker: Is the homeless encampment within 500 feet of a waterway (creek, lake or bay)? The city of Oakland agreed to assist residents on identifying their options. Members of the cleanup crew rolled tires and lifted couches overhead as larger equipment moved car after car, some just burned-out shells, off the state-owned lot. Lara Tannenbaum, the citys human services manager, who was at the meeting, told The Chronicle last month that officials will meet with residents and any intervention would be done in partnership with them. Walters: Is ending Californias homelessness just a matter of money? Local News | The commission also must follow an extensive legal process before being permitted to levy the $6,000 daily fine on Oakland, noted journalist Jaime Omar Yassin . City leaders say the encampment which spans property owned by the city, railroads and various government agencies is a crisis, but officials havent cleared it, arguing they dont have enough shelter beds for everyone. An officer will be dispatched to your location. Official Website for the City of Oakland | Mayor Sheng Thao. They come in out of nowhere, said Ben Murawski, another Wood Street resident, lamenting how agency employees destroy our homes.. What could reparations mean for Black residents of Alameda County? He currently plays for his neighbors outside his shelter, where a piano, guitar and drums are set up. How long has the homeless encampment been there? What could reparations mean for Black residents of Alameda County? Caltrans removed five people living on its property between 16th and 20th streets after the deadly fire in April and is now installing concrete barriers and fencing to prevent people from returning to the area. Housing | The shelters are full. Gavin Newsoms administration just awarded Oakland a $4.7 million grant to come up with a model at Wood Street one that can be replicated in other cities. Stuffed animals are seen on a couch at the Wood Street encampment on Friday, April 29, 2022 in Oakland, California. The city did not say exactly when it planned to begin closing the encampment, but said it would make reasonable efforts to avoid displacing people during excessive rain or very cold weather. Photos by Bront Wittpenn and Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle, decried the lack of access to clean water, just awarded Oakland a $4.7 million grant. The Oakland City Council voted Monday to open a co-governed homeless encampment to provide shelter for 40 people in West Oakland making it potentially the second site that residents and. Several non-emergency systems including phone lines within the City of Oakland are currently impacted or offline. But a solution might be on the horizon. Updated to include drought zones while tracking water shortage status of your area, plus reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. The city's lawyers had no comment on the ruling. Homeless Encampment at Lake Merritt Blvd Oakland, CA, 94607, USA: Hi, both sidewalks on either side of the channel going from Lake Merritt to the Bay are entirely blocked by homeless encampments. Its absurd to think that we've gotten this far through this process and we have not had anybody take a survey of who is actually affected by this, McGowan said at the hearing. A large fire that swept through a homeless encampment underneath the 880 Freeway in West Oakland on Monday destroyed several vehicles and RVs before it was put . Housing | Over the years, advocates have thwarted city attempts to close the encampment, demanding that the city offer residents adequate shelter or to leave them be. In the meantime, residents say they live in constant fear that they will be forced to leave with little notice. Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years Report the issue to our encampment management team at homelessness@oaklandca.gov. Since the restraining order was issued, another 12 fires have broken out on the site, Orrick said at the hearing. The city plans to offer approximately 40 emergency shelter beds to residents in the first phase of the closure, though its unclear how many people actually live in the affected area. Stay in touch. The number of people sleeping on Oaklands streets jumped from 1,902 in 2017 to 3,210 in 2019, according to the most recent point-in-time counts. The majority of the $12.6 million spent over the past two years went to staff and equipment associated with closing and cleaning encampments, as well as providing garbage services, portable toilets and water at camps. Yes, that's a toucan flying around Walnut Creek. February 22, 2023. Walters: Is ending Californias homelessness just a matter of money? (KRON4 News) OAKLAND ( KRON) - A two-alarm fire in an Oakland homeless . Photos: State clears Wood Street homeless camp,, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Bay Area weather: After thunderstorms and hail, snow could be on the way this weekend, Photos: State clears Wood Street homeless camp, Oaklands largest, Housing proposal for unhoused leaves Santa Clara residents sharply divided, Forcing Californians into mental health treatment would get easier with proposed legislation, Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years, After nearly two-month delay, judge allows Oakland to remove large homeless camp. Their. OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: Workers remove numerous items from the Wood Street homeless encampment on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Oakland, Calif. Caltrans is overseeing the cleanup of its property along Wood Street. Multiple. It is . City workers do a sweep at the homeless encampment under Interstate 580 in West Oakland as the city promise to deliver porter potties, fences, regular trash pickup, and counseling . Homeless advocates said residents were offered alternative shelter spaces. Caltrans crews remove a vehicle from the Wood Street encampment in West Oakland on July 19, 2022. The Oakland City Council unanimously passed a new homeless encampment policy Tuesday, more than 10 hours into a meeting where dozens of members of the public spoke passionately about the proposal and protesters rallied outside two councilmembers' homes. (Beth LaBerge/KQED) Caltrans workers clear a barricade made by Wood Street residents meant to keep Caltrans out of the encampment in Oakland on Sept. 8, 2022. Residents sued in July, saying it was more dangerous to force people to move on such short notice with no alternatives for shelter or housing. Plaintiffs' lawyers did not respond to an inquiry as to whether they would seek to appeal or otherwise challenge the determination. There are another 40 spaces available in pre-existing tiny home, safe parking and other sites throughout the city and there likely will be dozens of beds free at St. Vincent de Paul, a dorm-style shelter in West Oakland, according to the city. She and her husband, Lenton, live in a 20-foot trailer at the Coliseum Stadium parking lot in Oakland. In the six weeks following the TRO, the city advanced the RV park and cabin community projects to a point where it represented to the judge that it would be able to "hold" enough spots to accommodate all the 1707 Wood Street residents who wanted to be sheltered. Velena Jones reports. "I realize that there are alternatives that public policy could be generating that would work better for homelessness than what has happened in the past. As of last week, the city has offered shelter beds to about 70 people at the Wood Street encampment, according to the court filing. Theyre too densely packed together.. Ruined vegetation, broken irrigation lines and damaged fencing at Lake Merritt, as well as. Tucked away from the street, the encampment, commonly known as Wood Street, stretches along property owned by Caltrans, the city of Oakland, BNSF Railway and private owners. they paid around $400 a month in public assistance and charged. They said the city had not fulfilled promises made in connection with the prior lawsuit. But the city didnt give the team the resources it needed including a budget, according to the audit. That speaks to the demand and the concentration of homelessness, she added. The Encampment Management Policy seeks to address the adverse health and safety impacts of unsheltered homelessness, with compassion and care to not criminalize poverty. In October, the City Council approved an Encampment Management Policy, which prioritizes the removal of camps near homes, businesses, schools and other areas, and lays out health and safety rules encampments must follow. Our housed and unhoused residents are counting on us to make this right, Ruby wrote. LAPD union supports unarmed responders to certain 911 calls including homeless encampment clean-ups 0. Three days later, a group of encampment residents sued Caltrans, the governor, Oakland and a number of public officials in federal court, alleging that their forced removal from the site would constitute an unconstitutional "state created danger" and place them at a high degree of risk because there were not adequate shelter options for them in Oakland. Gavin Newsoms administration awarded Oakland a $4.7 million grant to fund a new community cabin site or tiny home village at Wood Street for about 50 people and to figure out how to help others at the site. She graduated from American University with a BA degree in literature with a minor in journalism. Many people at Wood Street live in RVs, cars and other vehicles. It is both a humanitarian duty and a civic expectation that our homeless become housed, and our City streets and parks are returned to their intended public uses.. Caltrans reports it's on pace to close 1,200 encampments in this fiscal year up nearly 500% from the 269 cleared last year. The Administration is grateful that the City Council unanimously approved a comprehensive, citywide Encampment Management Policy last October, and are now beginning to identify the necessary resources to support this important work with an understanding that even more is necessary, Reiskin wrote in an emailed statement. #2. portland oregon created those "affordable housing" by tearing down most of the old hotels or remodeling them. The city estimates there are at least 140 encampments scattered throughout Oakland. A. Sep 2022 Q. Report the issue to our encampment management team at homelessness@oaklandca.gov. Cars, RVs and debris burned Monday, sending a giant cloud of smoke into the sky, and freezing highway traffic in the vicinity. Over the next several weeks, the Caltrans site was cleaned and cleared and the residents moved to other locations and situations. Walters: Is ending Californias homelessness just a matter of money? The city says it needs to clear the camp to make way for a 170-unit affordable housing project planned for the site. street outreach, homeless shelters, Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani. To report an issue related to an encampment, please email Homelessness@oaklandca.gov. The encampment is one of the. But those are things that are beyond what can be ordered in this case.". Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). A resident of the 1707 Wood site and a local advocate then brought suit against Oakland in federal court asking that the city be enjoined. Weve created a system of effective strategies that address homelessness at every step in the cycle. Bay, Heres where California reservoir levels stand after recent rainfall, Your Privacy Choices (Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads). And Caltrans officials said the vehicles would be too difficult to move. Oakland mayor appoints former Compton city manager as Interim City Administrator . She started her journalism career reporting on crime and breaking news for The News-Press in Southwest Florida. The order is the latest in a long-running dispute over a homeless camp that once covered 40 acres under the Nimitz Freeway in Oakland, where between 200 and 300 people lived in vehicles, RVs, tents and other makeshift structures. The man was bleeding and was very confused asking police what he had done wrong. Information, if available, concerning the impacts of programs funded bv the Vacant Property Tax (2018 Measure W1 and 2020 Measure Q homelessness funds subject to Commission oversight this Ordinance on the occurrence of homelessness and illegal dumping outcomes in the City; Recommendations to the Mayor and the City Council on the Biennial Fiscal Year Budget, in accordance with the City Councils Consolidated Fiscal Policy at the time, that ensures that the Commission Chair communicates homelessness priorities to the Mayor and Council: and. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. People living in vehicles represent 35% of Oakland's overall homeless population. Antioch council to discuss new liquor stores ban, homeless housing