Berkeley may soon limit where homeless campsites can be set up near young children. Three City Council members, Rashi Kesarwani, Brent Blackaby and Terry Taplin, have proposed a 600-foot buffer zone that would keep tents away from preschools and in-home daycare facilities, according to The Berkeley Scanner. The proposal could reach the full council by the end of October.
How the neighborhood got here
Tension in northwest Berkeley has been building since the city broke up the Harrison Street encampment, which scattered its residents to other parts of town. Some of them moved to the area around Ninth and Camelia streets, close to two preschools and a school bus stop. About 60 neighbors, many of them parents of small children, have organized to keep a larger camp from taking hold there.
Residents told city leaders the situation has worsened quickly. They described a second tent and unattended belongings across the street, human waste where children play, blocked sidewalks, trash and vandalism at local businesses, and off-leash dogs. A nearby school reported a rat and flea infestation that neighbors said was the first in 50 years.
A federal court case shapes the options
The Camelia Street site is tied to an ongoing federal lawsuit brought by the Berkeley Homeless Union, which has raised disability-accommodation claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act. A federal judge has said Berkeley must consider tent sites the plaintiffs propose and allow those that meet certain criteria. So far only one site, at Ninth and Camelia, has been approved, according to court papers. The city has appealed to the Ninth Circuit, which has not yet ruled.
Berkeley already bans tent camping and sidewalk sleeping in residential areas, and can remove tents that are fire or health hazards, nuisances or obstructions. The buffer zone would widen those rules around facilities that care for young kids.
Why officials say a full ban won't work
At a packed community meeting Tuesday night at Longfellow Middle School, roughly 90 people attended, and most pressed for faster action. Several speakers called for a citywide ban on camping, sleeping in cars and RVs, pointing to neighboring Albany and El Cerrito.
Mayor Adena Ishii said the city lacks the staff to enforce such a ban, and told the crowd, "We don't feel like we're doing enough." City Manager Paul Buddenhagen said a ban would mean police arresting people, while acknowledging it is ultimately a policy choice. Ishii argued that criminalizing homelessness would create a revolving door rather than solve the problem.
Instead, the city is looking for alternative sites for a new sanctioned encampment, and Buddenhagen said officials will tour two unnamed locations in the coming weeks. He noted that a similar site on Grayson Street had cost about $1 million a year. He also promised to notify neighbors and businesses in advance when a new tent site is proposed nearby.
A few advocates, including members of Where Do We Go? Berkeley, urged neighbors to help fund housing and services instead.