HOMELESS Official taking proposal to City Council

ple sleeping outdoors cannot be cited since they have no other place to sleep.

Rodriguez said his plan would create an opportunity for police to again enforce the law against sleeping outdoors. In some cases, a homeless person would have a choice between taking the voucher or being cited or arrested, he said.

“Our cops are not out there trying to arrest someone for being homeless, but there are individuals who are constantly causing issues,” he said about how the enforcement power could be used against people known to destroy public property, break into buildings and cause other problems.

Rodriguez also said the city’s municipal code should prohibit putting tents on public property.

“We have a large population of homeless who are now setting up camps and tents in public spaces,” he said. “It’s a lot more visible. The calls I’m getting from constituents about it (have)

increased.”

But Rodriguez said his plan isn’t just about increased enforcement. He also is calling on the city to work with a nonprofit that will provide services at the shelter when it does open, and he wants the city to work with a variety of nonprofits, including ones that do not follow housing-first guidelines required by agencies funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Under housing-first, homeless people cannot be denied housing if they use drugs or have other issues. Proponents of the approach say providing a stable environment as a first step

makes recovery more likely, while opponents say housing first can perpetuate bad behavior and create unsafe environments for others living nearby.

Rodriguez said he also is open to the city exploring alternative forms of affordable housing, such as converted cargo crates or other small structures, and he wants services attached to them to help people become self-sufficient and healthy,

Rodriguez outlined parts of his plan in a letter that also blasted Mayor Esther Sanchez for comments she made in a San Diego Union-tribune article about a homeless encampment on South Oceanside

Boulevard.

The article was about Rodney Mcgough, a homeless man who lives on the site and helps keep it clean while also trying to get mental health services to others in the encampment.

Sanchez said she appreciated the respectful way Mcgough was behaving and she said the site “looks pretty good.”

In the letter released on social media, Rodriguez said Sanchez’s comments show she is out of touch with the situation, and he accused her of “kicking the can of homelessness down the road” without providing solutions.

Sanchez said Rodriguez

misunderstood her comments.

“I don’t believe anybody wants homeless camps or shelters in public places,” she said. “I also am against that.”

Rodriguez and Sanchez appear in agreement about the need to increase enforcement. Sanchez said the city can begin enforcing laws about sleeping outside once a shelter opens, and she said staff members are working on a plan to provide temporary shelter until the permanent one opens.

Staff writer Phil Diehl contributed to this report.

gary.warth@sduniontribune.com