Placer camping ordinance introduction approval not 'the end of the conversation'

With Tuesday's approval of the camping ordinance introduction, Placer County officials noted this starts the process of addressing the homeless issue. According to a county news release, the ordinance, titled the Camping and Personal Property Storage on County Property and Public Areas, aims to regulate camping and storage on county property where signage is posted and allows camping by necessity when shelter is not available. Placer County Deputy CEO Bekki Riggan noted during staff's presentation the desire to add behavior guidelines to include no harassment of county employees or constituents, no blocking right of ways, no utilizing public utilities and no creation of barriers. The ordinance also allows campsites to be cleaned and cleared, with Riggan saying the decision to do a "clean and clear" would need to be based on evidence of circumstances that threaten health and safety, as setting a cleaning schedule is not believed to be consistent with case law. Staff's presentation also included an overview of services the county currently offers and incidents that have taken place on the Placer County Government Center campus. According to Lt. Connie Schmidt with the Placer County Sheriff's Office, 13,374 calls for service were received for North Auburn between March 2021 and February 2022, with 4,335 calls being transient related. The Board of Supervisors received the input of Ret. Judge Richard Couzens, who facilitated the Feb. 23 community roundtable. Couzens noted the ordinance enforcement and supportive services provided is critical, and he believed it was necessary to have a place to provide unsheltered individuals with transitional living. "It's the combination of the ordinance plus the compassionate disposition while these people are trying to move on that I think is the key to this," Couzens said. Following Couzens' comments, the board accepted more than an hour of public comment. Comments included requests that a safe camping space be provided, services for those who do not qualify for current services provided and working with the community and faith-based organizations to create a resolution. "Our community is under assault. We need it dealt with now. Unfortunately, this ordinance as now proposed will not bring the actions needed to provide relief to the community," Auburn resident Wayne Nader said, noting he supports involving organizations in addressing the issue, though it may take months or years. "I will support the ordinance, but I am confident that it will fail in the attempt to bring this to the outcome we are all seeking." Said Jane Haproff, president of Placer People of Faith Together, "I was here in January when this was first heard, and I remember asking you for compassionate solutions. And I do believe that you have started down that road. All of the problems that people have identified here today in crime, this ordinance doesn't solve. It simply pushes it to a different place." Applegate resident Gary Mapa said, "Passing a no-camping ordinance in advance of not having heard back from the ad hoc committee, appointed in August 2021 consisting of the county and municipalities regarding a regional homeless action plan, is premature and possibly irresponsible." The board agreed the ordinance was a good first step and the start of an ongoing process to address homelessness in Placer. "This isn't the end of it," District 1 Supervisor Bonnie Gore said. "We clearly know that we have an issue with not enough shelter. That's why we have the homelessness task force that we've been working with, with our cities, and we will be coming out with some draft strategies to discuss. So this isn't the end of the conversation. We clearly have needs in this community that we need to address." Board Chair Cindy Gustafson suggested the county have a task force with community volunteers, faith-based organizations and unsheltered individuals to advise what is working on a quarterly basis. "I know implementation issues that go beyond the ordinance, but I think the public needs to hear what we're thinking," Gustafson said. "Are we just doing this and then we're going to sign everything and, you know, wash our hands? We're not. We're here in this for the long haul, and I think we have a commitment from all of our partners to be in that situation." The ordinance is tentatively scheduled to return to the board for adoption on March 22. According to the news release, county representatives will organize an implementation task force to develop a plan for implementation of the ordinance provisions.