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Santa Ana Mayor Valerie Amezcua is calling on her colleagues to take stronger action against homeless encampments with a new ordinance – potentially joining a host of cities who have bolstered anti-camping laws in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year.
“We cannot continue to turn a blind eye and we must not make excuses,” reads a Nov. 1 Facebook post from the Mayor announcing she plans to propose an ordinance to help the city address homelessness.
The request comes months after the Supreme Court overturned a case that required cities to offer shelter to homeless people before they were allowed to clear them off the streets.
In the aftermath of that ruling, cities across OC have stepped up enforcement efforts and enhanced anti-camping laws – a move that activists say will lead to the criminalization of people sleeping on the streets and worsen the crisis.
Brooke Weitzman, co-founder and directing attorney of the Elder Law Disability Rights Center, said in a Thursday text message that it is disappointing to see cities trying to use the county jail as housing.
“We hope Santa Ana will choose to respect the rights of its residents and refocus on adequate services and housing. This is critical given the growing number of seniors living and dying in our streets and their unique needs,” she wrote.
At their 5:30 p.m. meeting on Tuesday, Santa Ana officials will consider bolstering the city’s municipal code on camping and adopting an ordinance that would prohibit leaving personal property unattended in public and prohibit sleeping in a public restroom or on a public bench.
The ordinance would also prohibit anyone from staying at the civic center, a public plaza or park between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. and prohibit blocking access to buildings or sidewalks.
Amezcua’s proposal would also ban sleeping on bus benches or sitting on a bus bench one hour before services begin and immediately after services end.
Officials will also consider updating language in the municipal code that would include living in a car in its definition for camping.
Violating the proposed law could result in a misdemeanor or infraction. A police officer could also choose to take anyone who violates the law to get mental health or substance abuse treatment instead of taking them to jail if the person consents to getting help.
Efforts to crackdown on camping have already kicked off in Santa Ana.
City Manager Alvaro Nuñez said at a council meeting last month that Santa Ana police officers are clearing out encampments along the privately owned Union Pacific Railroad.
[Read: Santa Ana Ramps Up Crackdowns on Homeless Encampments, Clears Railroad]
His remarks came after Amezcua called at several public meetings this year for officials to take a stand against one of the city’s biggest issues – homelessness – and arrest people who are breaking the law.
[Read: How Are Santa Ana Officials Going to Address Homeless Encampments?]
Amezcua, who’s been heavily backed by the police union and is on track to be re-elected as mayor, said at the Oct. 15 meeting that the city offers assistance programs and a shelter for homeless people.
She also said that some of the people living on the streets have long criminal records – including murder and assault charges
“If they don’t want the assistance, then they need to go somewhere else and they need to not be in our city causing a problem,” she said at the Oct. 15 meeting. “What we need to do is take control and take back our city and not allow them to be dropped off here from other cities.”
OC Cities Crackdown on Homelessness
Santa Ana isn’t alone in cracking down on encampments.
Officials in Anaheim, Newport Beach, San Clemente and Aliso Viejo have all revamped their anti-camping laws in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling earlier this year.
Last week, Irvine officials strengthened their anti-camping ordinance after backing out of a homeless shelter at the last minute following public pushback.
[Read: Irvine Looks to Crackdown on Illegal Camping After Homeless Shelter Reversal]
Last month, Garden Grove officials voted to introduce an ordinance that prohibits camping at public spaces and prohibits blocking access to public places like sidewalks, benches, parks and storm drains.
Garden Grove Councilman George Brietigram – who requested the ordinance – said at the Oct. 22 city council meeting that the city has tackled the homeless issue head on by introducing a host of resources including opening a shelter, but many people continue to refuse help.
[Read: Garden Grove Looks to Crack Down on Homeless Encampments After Supreme Court Ruling]
“It’s not healthy. It’s not compassionate to allow them to die in the streets,” he said.
“The whole intent of it is for it to be used compassionately, not draconian. We want to encourage them first, to take advantage of all these services that we have, and then, if all else – sorry we have this law. You can’t continue to be here.”
Homeless in Santa Ana
Earlier this year, county leaders reported 7,322 homeless people in Orange County – a nearly 2,000-person increase in the county’s homeless population since 2022.
Over 4,100 of those people were sleeping on the streets.
[Read: Orange County Homeless Population Continues Growing]
According to the latest count, there are 1,428 homeless people in Santa Ana – the highest out of any city in OC – and 871 of them are unsheltered.
This year, the Orange County Sheriff’s department released a report that showed close to 500 homeless people died in 2022 – an increase of 25.6% from 2021.
About 19% of those deaths – 95 people – happened in Santa Ana, according to the report.
Hosam Elattar is a Voice of OC reporter and corps member with Report for America, a GroundTruth initiative. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam.
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