kept in homes through Keep Oakland Housed in Fiscal Year 19-20, moved from homelessness to permanent housing in Fiscal Year 19-20, Oakland doubled transitional housing capacity from 2018-2020, City of Oakland Opens 100-bed Cabin Shelter Program at Wood Street, Estelle Clemons, Interim Director of Human Services and, Daniel Cooper, Homelessness Administrator, The Funding will enable the Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing project to make accessibility and other improvements to the building to address the needs of some of our most vulnerable neighbors, Learn About the City's Homelessness Strategy, Joint Statement regarding Homeless Services Performance Audit, City of Oakland Receives $5.6M Homekey Award for Transitional Housing Acquisition and Rehabilitation. He said, "This TRO is not a long-term prohibition on Oakland's actions but rather a stopgap to prevent violation of constitutional rights that are likely to result from the combination of the state-of-emergency weather situation and the failure to provide alternative shelter.". But the city didnt give the team the resources it needed including a budget, according to the audit. The encampment is on property owned by the city, railroads and various government agencies, including Caltrans, which owns the property directly under the freeway. Workers have been clearing the sprawling camp in phases, a process that started in July. A hand-painted sign can be seen at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, May 3, 2022. The Commission shall review relevant financial and operational reports related to the expenditure of the homeless services fund. 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. OAKLAND, Calif. ( KRON) Caltrans announced in a press release Friday that it will shut down the homeless encampment on Wood Street. A day later, tensions escalated when witnesses said Oakland police tased an encampment resident. Neighbors tell Da Lin the looming closure is long overdue. Caltrans announced it is closing the entire Wood Street . The encampment is now so huge that some residents drive buses and motorcycles to get from one end to the other. But the time for finger-pointing and disclaimers of responsibility is over. Oakland mayor appoints former Compton city manager as Interim City Administrator . (213) 229-1700. 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 plaintiffs and all living at the Wood Street encampment must make immediate plans to move.". Attorneys for Caltrans said the encampment posed a serious health and safety risk, citing some 200 fires at the Wood Street encampment over the past two years. A large column of black smoke rises Tuesday, April 5, 2022, from a fire at a homeless encampment next to West Grand Avenue and Wood Street in Oakland's Prescott neighborhood. Last year Caltrans cleared a much larger camp between 200 and 300 people on a neighboring lot owned by the transit agency. 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. Housing | That order was dissolved about a month later, when the city said it was set to open a new tiny home site near the encampment, and a safe parking site in East Oakland for people living in RVs. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group), OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: An officer with the California Highway Patrol watches as a vehicle is towed 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. (Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group), OAKLAND, CA - SEPTEMBER 26: Workers remove a couch 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. 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. But Orrick told the agencies to work it out. 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. (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 the Cob on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, in Oakland, Calif. Caltrans is overseeing the cleanup of its property along Wood Street. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. 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. Housing proposal for unhoused leaves Santa Clara residents sharply divided To report an issue related to an encampment, please email Homelessness@oaklandca.gov. Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years Clutch, a 40-year-old resident, holds his neighbors dog, Panda, near his van at Oaklands Wood Street homeless encampment. We appreciate your patience; the homelessness@oaklandca.gov service has been restored. Oakland was overwhelmed by the crisis, leaving staff working to solve the problem without proper training or resources, according to the report. Residents of the encampment said they know that Caltrans has long wanted to clear them out and plan to resist if the sweep happens. 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. that was may . The choice: Leave, or hunker down. 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). In a lawsuit filed this week, grassroots group Neighbors. Housing | All Access Digital offer for just 99 cents! Aric Crabb has been a staff photographer at the Bay Area News Group since 1998. 1,000 people on a section of the former Oakland Army Base. PUBLISHED: February 27, 2023 at 4:49 p.m. | UPDATED: February 28, 2023 at 1:58 p.m. A federal judge on Monday ruled the city can resume efforts to remove dozens of people from a large homeless. 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. Gov. Review and respond annually to the Citys 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. Since the restraining order was issued, another 12 fires have broken out on the site, Orrick said at the hearing. What could reparations mean for Black residents of Alameda County? Sign up for our daily newsletter. Copyright 2023 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. 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. OaklandWorkers continued Monday to clear the massive homeless encampment along Wood Street in West Oakland. 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. We are ready to scale up for reductions in homelessness, though new state and federal funds and more intergovernmental coordination are needed. The departments goal is to respond to 90% of calls within seven minutes. The city did not immediately return a request for comment. The encampment is one of the largest in the city and has been plagued with problems such as illegal dumping and fires for years. The only way to get through involves stepping over bulky items, bbq grills, bikes, tents, and garbage. But those plans were slow in coming. Multiple fires have erupted at the city's largest homeless encampment, which. OAKLAND, CA When U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick issued a temporary restraining order on Jan. 6, 2023 forbidding the city of Oakland from closing a homeless encampment at 1707. 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. 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. The Encampment Management Team tracks all known encampments and prioritizes interventions based on health, safety, and size issues. When U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick issued a temporary restraining order on Jan. 6, 2023, forbidding the city of Oakland from closing a homeless encampment at 1707 Wood St., he told the . 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. The man was bleeding and was very confused asking police what he had done wrong. Caltrans reports it's on pace to close 1,200 encampments in this fiscal year up nearly 500% from the 269 cleared last year. View the map in a new window. City lawyers had no comment on the ruling. 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 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. Santa Ana, California 92703. He issued a temporary injunction on July 19, 2022. Official Website for the City of Oakland | Mayor Sheng Thao. Credit: Darwin BondGraham. 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. Heres where California reservoir levels stand after this weeks rains. OAKLAND - Fire swept through a homeless encampment near the MacArthur Maze highway interchange in West Oakland on Monday morning. That case was assigned to Judge Orrick, who expressed concern about the short notice and lack of shelter options. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. I really love this life here.. Multiple. 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. LA CITY COUNCIL GREENLIGHTS BAN ON HOMELESS ENCAMPMENTS 500 FEET FROM SCHOOLS, DAYCARE CENTERS Though Newsom's handling of the Oakland matter was worded authoritatively, the governor has also. The homelessness crisis also has taken a toll on Oaklands public parks, according to the audit. Ideally, the auditors office wrote, those calls should have been responded to in 10 to 15 minutes. Clutch, a 40-year-old Wood Street encampment resident who said he has no last name, was one of the five people moved last month. $400 rent for the low income housing they made. Despite the problems, Wood Street residents say they look out for each other and have formed a self-sufficient community, building homes using wood panels and doors among the abandoned railroad tracks. 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. Wood Street encampment resident Theo Cedar Jones plays guitar. But the injunction was dissolved in phases, beginning in August of 2022, giving residents more time to find other alternatives. Thank you for your patience while we work to restore services. Oakland. people had to eat at charity style centers, and a sunday 'picnic in the park' feed. In an earlier statement, Caltrans said it planned to clear the camp to address the increasingly serious safety risks to life, property and infrastructure at the encampment. The agency said it was coordinating with the city and the county to offer residents shelter. To report an issue related to an encampment, please email Homelessness@oaklandca.gov. The controversial policy was approved by the City Council last year, but it's largely gone unenforced. 211 West Temple Street. Previously, she covered breaking news and crime for The 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. The city spent $12.6 million over the past two fiscal years, mostly unbudgeted, to manage the camps that have spread across city streets, sidewalks, parks and open spaces, according to a report released Wednesday by the city auditor. 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 . In May, city officials told The Chronicle that they dont have enough shelter beds to offer to everyone at Wood Street. She graduated from American University with a BA degree in literature with a minor in journalism. 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. When U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick issued a temporary restraining order on Jan. 6, 2023 forbidding the city of Oakland from closing a homeless encampment at 1707 Wood St., he told. But that's only a fraction of the more than 5,000 encampments on . Residents say the camp is a place where they can live how they want after losing stable homes because of evictions or job losses. Dozens of Caltrans workers and California Highway . (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. Housing | #2. portland oregon created those "affordable housing" by tearing down most of the old hotels or remodeling them. Updated on: July 20, 2022 / 8:30 AM / CBS San Francisco. The Commission on Homelessness provides oversight of the Oakland vacant property tax received bv the City of Oakland for homeless services, and makes recommendations to the City Council for strategies to remedy homelessness. Husbands-Hankin said she saw an officer tase the man and tackle him to the ground. Previously, she covered breaking news and crime for The Chronicle. Grappling with homelessness, California weighs extending foster care for 5 years At issue is a large encampment on a city-owned piece of vacant land off Wood Street in West Oakland. The encampment is one of the. 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. City staff were there to clear out residents from the northern part of the encampment, near the city-sanctioned RV safe parking site. We are hard at work implementing that policy amidst a historic budget shortfall, staffing shortages, and an ongoing pandemic that has limited the shelter options available to the residents of our encampments, the statement continued. For now, it appears that camp residents will have at least another long weekend at the park before the standoff continues. Newsom paid a surprise visit to the encampment in April to show the inhumane living conditions too many Californians face.. You will be asked to sign off on an arrest warrant. By City News Service on . Official Website for the City of Oakland | Mayor Sheng Thao. 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 Oakland police department, the Oakland city councilmember responsible for the area, and the mayor's office official running specific policy towards homeless encampments did not respond to a . Forcing Californians into mental health treatment would get easier with proposed legislation 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. A burned-out van amid charred rubble of where Ramon Choyce once lived at a homeless encampment on Wood Street in Oakland. Several non-emergency systems including phone lines within the City of Oakland are currently impacted or offline. Marisa Kendall is a housing reporter for the Bay Area News Group who covers homelessness for The Mercury News and East Bay Times. 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 5-days' notice to clear the site. 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