CHICO PARK ‘SWEEPS’ REMAIN POSSIBLE
Lack of available shelter compounds problem
CHICO » Chico staff have not confirmed if park encampments will be cleared before Christmas, two weeks after the city’s park ordinance was modified with harsher punishments for violations like camping.
Chico Police Department Target Team members have made contact with some still camping in Bidwell Park but have not communicated if there is a set timeline for people to leave the park. Capt. Greg Keeney said Monday no members of the department’s team will be available to discuss the issue for one week.
“The plan is still to continue with last week’s efforts of educating and notifying people of the Chico City Council’s decision to increase the enforcement of the park rules and this effort will include social services to help people find the resources they may need,” Public Information Officer Michelle Walker said.
While some engagement included removal of trash from encampments like one located between Pine and Cypress streets, Public Works Director Erik Gustafson said Thursday he had not heard any definite timeline for more trash clean ups, or “clearing out” camps.
If anyone is soon asked to move their encampment and belongings out of the park, Gustafson said it will be up to the Target Team and park rangers. But while the city is working to establish shelter space, “We haven’t received specific direction that we’re starting to evict people,” he said.
Gustafson added there has not been an increase in overall trash pickups at any one site. However, he said Public Works crews picked up trash the week of Dec. 7 and on Thursday morning from campers in the Pine and Cypress greenway.
And, he said in Bidwell Park in 2020 garbage pickups at every bin in the park have increased to being serviced daily in both summer and winter, where in past years pickups would only take place twice a week in the winter months. That’s because large amounts of garbage in those areas are creating “challenges for safety standards,” he added.
“We understand it’s a pretty large scenario at this point,” he said. “We have to be strategic and focus on certain areas at first.”
“Anywhere in Bidwell Park is not designed for overnight camping. It’s really starting to take its toll.”
But, “some of these people need places to go,” he added.
Sheltering options
There are no options for those currently unhoused in the county, and the number of people expected to become unhoused could rise in the com
ing weeks. Evictions in January are likely nationwide as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s nationwide eviction moratorium will be lifted, after being enacted Sept. 4 to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19. The Wall Street Journal reported Dec. 13 between 2.4 million and 5 million American households are at risk of eviction and millions more will be vulnerable in the months after, according to estimates from the investment bank and financial-advisory firm Stout Risius Ross.
Butte County remains under a regional stay-athome order until further notice due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The only temporary shelter in Chico available during the order is a periodic warming center which was operated by the city overnight Wednesday through Friday. These are opened during periods of extreme weather such as temperatures below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, or periods of wind and/or rain. Although not certain to be connected to extreme weather or other circumstances, there have been at least seven deaths occurring in the “public right of way” in 2020, according to official news releases from the city.
While temperatures are projected to remain seasonably chilly (with daytime highs around 60 degrees and overnight lows nearing 37 degrees) throughout the week, the warming center is not open at this time.
“We have not hit the activation criteria for the beginning of the week, however, staff continues to monitor for the end of the week/ weekend and is assessing activation based off of the possibility and amount of precipitation,” Chico Public Information Officer Lynda Gizzi said Monday.
Staff of the nonprofit True North Housing Alliance, Inc. also announced Monday the organization is postponing opening an additional shelter at this time.
According to Director Joy Amaro, the organization will be focusing on permanent housing options while maintaining the Torres Community Shelter for emergency shelter, the Aurora North Bridge Housing program for families and other rapid rehousing and transitional housing efforts. The emergency shelter closed when the county entered the most restrictive tier of operations due to the pandemic.
“There is a higher risk of COVID-19 transmission indoors and within congregate living facilities,” Amaro wrote Monday.
“Opening another congregate living facility for the unsheltered right now would put those the organization serves — adults, seniors with chronic illnesses and families with children — at even greater risk of exposure and even possible death caused by the virus. This is also true for the dedicated staff of True North, who have worked tirelessly over the course of the pandemic to ensure that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention protocols have been followed within their congregate working environment.”
Amaro added True North is in support of the city establishing a temporary sanctioned encampment and that “a sanctioned encampment is a better temporary sheltering solution for those unsheltered at this time due to the higher risk of COVID-19 transmission indoors and in congregate living facilities.”
The city said in a press release Monday that it is continuing efforts to create a camp at the Silver Dollar BMX track on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway near the Torres Shelter, but that is dependent on getting an easement for entering and exiting the area from a neighboring business and funding the BMX track’s move to the Chico Municipal Airport. The business is expected to decide whether or not to allow the easement in January, according to the release.