Homeless Encampment Clean-ups Understand the Full Picture

Transcription

1 Homeless Encampment Clean-ups Understand the Full Picture Jay Burney, Assistant City Manager, City of Olympia Rich Hoey, Public Works Director, City of Olympia 1

2 Discussion Items State of Homelessness/Community Impacts Case Law Surrounding Encampment Clean-Up Olympia s Approach and Process Public Safety Concerns Public Infrastructure/Health Impacts Process/Results Takeaways State of Homelessness On any given night, 643,067 people experience homelessness in America Approximately 21,000 people in the State of Washington identify as homeless (Up 7.3% over 2016) Sources: The National Alliance to End Homelessness WA State Dept. of Commerce 2

3 Regional Impacts Regional Impacts 3

4 Olympia Impacts Case Law Kincaid vs. Fresno $2.35 Million Class-Action 100 s of Plaintiffs Personal Property Seized Without Notice Court Ruling Violation of the Right to be Free From Unreasonable Search & Seizure The Court s ruling and the settlement should send a strong message to other cities throughout our country that if they violate the rights of their most vulnerable residents, they will be held accountable, said ACLU-NC staff attorney Michael Risher. 4

5 Case Law Lehr et al vs. Sacramento $800,000 Class-Action Judgement 11 Plaintiffs Improper Notice and Citations 8 th Amendment Excessive Fines 4 th Amendment Search & Seizure 14 th Amendment Due Process The solution to homelessness is housing. It is not in harassing homeless people until they go away. Plaintiff's Attorney Case Law Ellis vs. Clark County $250,000 Settlement Six Plaintiffs Federal Judge Ruled County Liable For Improper Seizure/Notice New Policy Implemented 5

6 Olympia s Approach Old Way Reliance on probation work crew Decentralized Inconsistent approaches Need for policy Olympia s New Approach Interim Policy and Procedure City-wide approach Focus on City-owned property Conflict/public safety based Improved notice Clean-up procedures Management of personal property Safety 6

7 Notice of Trespass and Clean-Up 72-hours in advance of clean-up Serve and post notice How/where to reclaim personal property Provide street sheet, trash bags, sharps containers Take photos to document!! Clean-up Activities Safety first! Coordinate with law enforcement Responsible City official on-site at all times Personal property must be bagged and tagged for storage Management of solid/hazardous waste FOLLOW YOUR POLICY! 7

8 Personal Property Examples Wallets/purses Identification Credit cards Checks/money Duffel bags/backpacks Sleeping bags Tents Clothes Bicycles Jewelry/watches Eye glasses Medical records/personal papers Weapons Identification of Property Must be easily identifiable and in plain view Field inspect backpacks/bags Items that pose a health hazard will be treated as garbage 8

9 Collecting and Storing Property Tag all found property: Name of person submitting property Date Address Case number Any info regarding owner Coordinate with law enforcement treat as found property: Storage Found weapons Drugs Contract for Clean-up Services Insufficient internal resources Safety issues Environmental risks training/ppe needed Potential for confrontations Issued RFP for clean-up support consistent with City Policy Selected three firms for contracts up to $99,999 each Varying expertise and costs for different types of environmental conditions 9

10 Case Study 4 th /5 th Ave Bridges Clean-up Costs: $16,874 (contractor) Material Removed: Four 30-yard containers of garbage Staff Support: Code Enforcement Olympia Police Department PW Transportation access/graffiti abatement PW Solid Waste State Patrol support 10

11 Takeaways Proper Notice Needs to Be Provided At Least 72 Hours Review Your Ordinances Regarding Issuing of Citations o Trespass? o No Camping? o Free Speech vs. Camping? Provide Opportunities to Collect Personal Property Provide Information on Resources in Your Community Take Photos and Document! Be Prepared for Public Relations Needs ADOPT A POLICY AND FOLLOW IT! 11