211 West Temple Street. Brigitte Nicoletti, an attorney assisting residents in their pro se lawsuit, reiterated that request at the hearing on Friday. 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. A. The residents would have a social contract, love thy neighbor and do no harm, Jones said. You will be asked to sign off on an arrest warrant. The city of Oakland agreed to assist residents on identifying their options. The City Council has to approve the plans and construction is likely to take longer than other sites because a set of railroad tracks cuts through the property. Stuffed animals are seen on a couch at the Wood Street encampment on Friday, April 29, 2022 in Oakland, California. Earlier this month, Gov. 1,000 people on a section of the former Oakland Army Base. Several non-emergency systems including phone lines within the City of Oakland are currently impacted or offline. Those are things that are beyond what can be ordered in this case, he said. It ended badly, Hit bean company Rancho Gordo embroiled in discrimination lawsuit. Get Morning Report and other email newsletters. "What I have tried to do is create a possibility of relocation in a way that is the least harmful to the people who live on Wood Street," he said at the hearing. Ruined vegetation, broken irrigation lines and damaged fencing at Lake Merritt, as well as degraded water quality in the tidal marsh, will cost the city an estimated $550,000, according to the report. Thats on top of nearly 90 fires at the site for the 12 months through March. 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 . The conditions at the encampment which has mountains of trash and burned-out vehicles were called cruel and inhumane in a U.N. report from 2018. Caltrans plans to clear out 200 homeless people from the sprawling homeless encampment at Oaklands Wood Street by the first week of August, officials said. $400 rent for the low income housing they made. 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. An officer will be dispatched to your location. In May, city officials put the total number of residents in the encampment at 300 people. Reporting an Issue If you or someone you know is hungry, homeless, or housing insecure - Call 2-1-1. All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Cars, RVs and debris burned Monday, sending a giant cloud of smoke into the sky, and freezing highway traffic in the vicinity. Ramona Choyce recounts the moment when an April fire killed one person at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, May 3, 2022. Last year Caltrans cleared a much larger camp between 200 and 300 people on a neighboring lot owned by the transit agency. 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). Ruined vegetation, broken irrigation lines and damaged fencing at Lake Merritt, as well as. But IT network challenges ended up delaying the opening of the tiny homes (the city proclaimed a state of emergency earlier this month after a ransomware attack brought down many online systems), prompting the judge to once again bar Oakland from clearing the camp. Theo Cedar Jones, a resident at Wood Street for nearly two years who lives in a makeshift shelter, said he doesnt like the citys community cabin model and wouldnt use it. 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.". But the time for finger-pointing and disclaimers of responsibility is over. The decision from Judge William Orrick comes after a month-long legal battle between residents and the transit agency, the city, and the county. Copyright 2023 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Credit: Darwin BondGraham. Oakland which has more than 5,000 homeless people currently has 598 year-round, city-funded shelter beds, 313 community cabin and temporary structure shelter spaces, 147 RV safe parking. OAKLAND - Caltrans announced Friday that they are shutting down a homeless encampment near the MacArthur Maze in West Oakland due to ongoing safety concerns and a large fire that tore. They have lacked funding, housing options and staff, he said. Because of the connection to the earlier litigation, the case was assigned to Judge Orrick who entered a TRO on January 6, 2023. The spokesperson said officers were at the scene to assist the citys public works department with an intervention and closure of a small part of the encampment. The Commission shall review relevant financial and operational reports related to the expenditure of the homeless services fund. Sarah Ravani covers Oakland and the East Bay at The San Francisco Chronicle. Homeless Encampment at 9418 Edes Ave Oakland, CA, 94603, USA: Im a community member and my street is getting full of RV and abandoned cars for many months now. 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 . The city's lawyers had no comment on the ruling. Oakland is experiencing a network outage that is affecting key services such as Oak311, permitting and business tax. We do need permanent supportive housing and where is it? (Beth LaBerge/KQED) Caltrans can begin evicting the estimated 200 people who live under an 880 overpass in West Oakland after Labor Day, a federal district judge ruled Friday. 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. Its unclear whether residents will be open to moving to a city-sanctioned site. In these situations, the Encampment Response Map will include information about the code violation case instead of details about an encampment cleanup effort. The audit found the new policy lays the groundwork for needed change, but implementation has been slow, as the city is inundated with complaints about encampments. The man was bleeding and was very confused asking police what he had done wrong. The departments goal is to respond to 90% of calls within seven minutes. Caltrans has cleared the parts of the encampment on its property three times in the past year and says it will continue to do so if safety concerns, such as fires, continue. That case was assigned to Judge Orrick, who expressed concern about the short notice and lack of shelter options. 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. Heres where California reservoir levels stand after this weeks rains. Under these circumstances, the judge found that the standards for the TRO were no longer met. . 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. Walters: Is ending Californias homelessness just a matter of money? The city needs to fund a formal encampment management program to implement the policy passed in October, and to address the findings of the audit, the auditors office wrote. They declined to speak to reporters. He dissolved the TRO immediately, conditioned on the city's representations that there would be sufficient shelter options for the displaced residents. Oakland was overwhelmed by the crisis, leaving staff working to solve the problem without proper training or resources, according to the report. Ideally, the auditors office wrote, those calls should have been responded to in 10 to 15 minutes. Mayor Libby Schaaf, city administrator Ed Reiskin, police Chief LeRonne Armstrong and Daniel Cooper, the citys newly appointed homelessness administrator, were at Wood Street on Wednesday. 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. 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.. That injunction was dissolved in phases, beginning in August of 2022, giving residents more time to find other alternatives. To report an issue related to an encampment, please email Homelessness@oaklandca.gov. The Encampment Management Team is responsible for implementing the Encampment Management Policy and directing coordination across city departments. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. She graduated from American University with a BA degree in literature with a minor in journalism. Wood Street residents deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, Husbands-Hankin said. Gavin Newsoms office publicly excoriated Oakland officials for failing to cooperate and threatened to withhold state funds. Skinny lives at 37MLK, the homeless encampment in Oakland, California, that was created by community organizers taking over a vacant lot. 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. The Citys suggestion that it has no responsibility for homeless individuals on state property unless there is a specific earmark is simply unacceptable, Patterson wrote. 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. A spokesperson for the Oakland Police Department said the department is investigating a use-of-force incident on Thursday just after 2:45 p.m. in the area of West Grand Avenue and Wood Street. The shelters are full. Since the restraining order was issued, another 12 fires have broken out on the site, Orrick said at the hearing. 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. Several non-emergency systems including phone lines within the City of Oakland are currently impacted or offline. (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. The city of Oakland pursued closures of 98 encampments during the two years we examined. OAKLAND - Fire swept through a homeless encampment near the MacArthur Maze highway interchange in West Oakland on Monday morning. Aric Crabb has been a staff photographer at the Bay Area News Group since 1998. How long has the homeless encampment been there? 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. James Wiseman, leadership genius? July 20, 2022 / 8:52 AM / CBS San Francisco OAKLAND -- A federal judge on Tuesday granted a temporary order blocking Caltrans from clearing a homeless encampment under the MacArthur Maze. "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. Previously, she covered breaking news and crime for The Chronicle. December 24, 2022, 9:57 AM SAN FRANCISCO -- A federal judge has temporarily banned San Francisco from clearing homeless encampments, saying the city violated its own policies by failing to offer other shelter. A burned-out van amid charred rubble of where Ramon Choyce once lived at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland. Housing | Oakland mayor appoints former Compton city manager as Interim City Administrator . The encampment is. The land was mostly owned by Caltrans and after a history of fires on the site and concerns about the proximity of a nearby oxygen production plant on July 15, 2022 the agency gave residents five-days' notice to clear the site. A show made by people behind bars in California prisons. Local News | The result is a shuffling with no long-term strategy on how to get people into more permanent, supportive housing. She and her husband, Lenton, live in a 20-foot trailer at the Coliseum Stadium parking lot in Oakland. 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. Local News | After Caltrans clears part of the encampment, residents move to another part sometimes city property. The transportation agency said in a release they will begin shutting down the entire encampment in phases beginning July 20 and will work with city officials and the county to place people in alternate shelter. Housing proposal for unhoused leaves Santa Clara residents sharply divided Oakland Unveils 100-Person Tiny-Home Village at Troubled Wood Street Encampment What was once northern California's largest homeless encampment at Wood Street in Oakland now has 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. The department is taking this action to address the increasingly serious safety risks to life, property and infrastructure at the encampment, including from the fire this week that prompted the closure of the MacArthur Maze, Caltrans said in a statement. There are about 4,000 homeless people many of them living in at least 140 . The controversial policy was approved by the City Council last year, but it's largely gone unenforced. Warriors treating Andrew Wiggins with understandable patience, but his Gov. 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 final 2019-2021 budget allocates $32 million to address homelessness by: expanding health, sanitation, safety services for unsheltered residents funding self-governed encampments and temporary housing options such as tiny homes, shipping containers, and mobile homes. 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. Clutch, a 40-year-old resident, holds his neighbors dog, Panda, near his van at Oaklands Wood Street homeless encampment. The complaint stated, "The residents of 1707 Wood Street have nowhere to go. A hand-painted sign can be seen at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland. If you or someone you know is hungry, homeless, or housing insecure - Call 2-1-1. In July the city began clearing an area between West Grand and 26th Street in Oakland in preparation for a shelter at the site, which would house approximately 50 people. The encampment is now so huge that some residents drive buses and motorcycles to get from one end to the other. Local News | Without a "constitutional right to housing," Orrick said he had no authority to allow the encampment to remain on the property. Report the issue to our encampment management team at homelessness@oaklandca.gov. As of last week, the city has offered shelter beds to about 70 people at the Wood Street encampment, according to the court filing. While the city was working to open a safe parking area for RVs that would accommodate 29 vehicles and a "cabin community" with 31 beds, neither site was yet ready for occupancy. 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. At the start of 2020, the city was conducting several camp closures each monthseven in January, and nine each in February and Marchuntil COVID-19 cases began rising and the county went on lockdown. He said his latest order could be rescinded if the city fails to provide enough shelter beds or fails to make outreach workers available to help displaced residents find alterative shelter. Our housed and unhoused residents are counting on us to make this right, Ruby wrote. Newsom paid a surprise visit to the encampment in April to show the inhumane living conditions too many Californians face.. Oakland residents told a polling firm in 2023 that homelessness, such as at the Wood Street encampment, is their top concern for the city to address in its coming budget. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. (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. Audit: Oaklands $12.6 million homelessness, 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, Audit: Oaklands $12.6 million homelessness response lacked strategy, direction, 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. She said some weeks she only had 25 open shelter beds out of nearly 600 in the system. But the city didnt give the team the resources it needed including a budget, according to the audit. To reduce homelessness, we must slow its growth and keep more people in their homes. A surprise sweep of a newly formed homeless encampment on state property has forced some unhoused West Oakland residents to move - yet again.