Another Orange County City Cracks Down on Homeless Camps

Brea is the latest successful a question of Orange County cities taking purpose astatine stateless camps by bolstering anti-camping laws. 

This week, Brea City Council members voted unanimously to instrumentality the archetypal steps successful strengthening anti-camping laws, making it unlawful for stateless radical to campy oregon loiter successful nationalist places oregon permission idiosyncratic belongings successful places similar sidewalks. 

At the assembly meeting, Brea Police Chief Adam Hawley said they’re besides going to proceed offering services.

“We’re going to proceed with that attack to beryllium capable to supply proactive engagement and heighten affirmative thoroughfare outreaches. These ordinances are an important instrumentality successful bid to enforce laws for those who whitethorn beryllium work resistant and to beforehand nationalist information and nationalist health,” Hawley said. 

Hawley, who besides serves arsenic the president of the North Orange County Public Safety Collaborative, gave recognition to the Hope Center and the Brea Resource Center for stateless outreach efforts. 

A mates years ago, the collaborative – successful concern with section churches – launched a low-interest indebtedness programme to assistance families get disconnected Orange County streets and into housing. 

[Read: Coalition of North OC Churches Creates Low-Interest Loans to Curb Homelessness] 

The 2024 Point successful Time study showed Brea had 82 unhoused people. 

The ordinance voted connected by the metropolis assembly amended the existing laws astir camping similar reducing the clip constabulary whitethorn impound abandoned idiosyncratic spot and prohibiting camping connected backstage spot to specifically see retail buying halfway parking lots.

If approved successful February, sleeping successful cars volition besides beryllium prohibited arsenic good arsenic underground camping. Anti-loitering laws successful places similar parks and autobus benches volition besides beryllium instituted if passed. 

In June past year, a Supreme Court ruling made it ineligible for cities to mention and apprehension radical sleeping connected sidewalks and parks contempt the availability of nary structure beds.  

Prior to their ruling, a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals determination deemed it unlawful for a idiosyncratic to beryllium criminally punished for loitering oregon sleeping connected nationalist spot unless the metropolis had a definite fig of structure beds.  

Since a bulk of Supreme Court Justices overturned that ruling past June, respective OC cities tightened anti-camping laws. 

[Read: The Year of Homeless Camp Crackdowns successful Orange County]

Anaheim, Newport Beach, Irvine, Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Aliso Viejo and Stanton are among the OC cities that person overhauled their anti-camping laws aft the Supreme Court ruling. 

In Anaheim, it is unlawful to fume baccy oregon cannabis successful parks, autobus stops oregon adjacent daycares and schools, assemble and merchantability bikes connected nationalist spot and artifact sidewalks. 

Similarly, successful Santa Ana, the metropolis assembly made it amerciable to slumber oregon loiter successful nationalist places. 

Officials and metropolis unit successful Anaheim and Santa Ana expressed akin sentiment arsenic Brea Police Chief Hawley, successful that these caller ordinances could assistance scope radical who defy taking help.  

In July past year, Gov. Gavin Newsom called connected metropolis officials to “do their part” successful addressing the stateless situation and cleaning up encampments   

[Read: Gov. Newsom Calls connected Local Leaders to Clean Up Encampments – Will They?]

According to the 2024 constituent successful time count, determination are 7,322 stateless people. 4,173 of those radical are unhoused successful Orange County.  

Gigi Gradillas is simply a Voice of OC Tracy Wood Reporting Fellow. Contact her astatine gigi.gradillas@gmail.com oregon connected Twitter @gigigradillas.

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