Riverside Outlaws Homeless Encampments Near Schools, Parks

RIVERSIDE, CA — Riverside is moving forward with an ordinance to ban encampments in public spaces such as schools, parks and homeless shelters.

The City Council voted 6-1 Tuesday to make changes to the city code.

The proposal came after the U.S. Supreme Court decided on June 28 that local governments could arrest people camping or sleeping on public property — even if there weren't enough shelter beds available for them.

According to the 2023 Point-In-Time Count, 605 people were experiencing homelessness in Riverside — an 18% increase from 2022.

"In this city, we have public safety and health risks," Jack Liu, Riverside's acting city attorney, said at the council meeting on Tuesday night.

During Liu's presentation, he said that last year, a 3-year-old had suffered fentanyl exposure and stopped breathing. The child's 2 and 5-year-old siblings were living in a vehicle with their parents when the mother and father died of suspected drug use. All of the children were exposed, he said.

Throughout 2023, fire crews responded to 848 vegetation and rubbish fires in local open-space areas were all suspected to have stemmed from "human activity" in the areas, Liu said.

The city has counted 730 encampments along the riverbed, where 267.29 tons of trash was collected last year.

Here's what the ordinance prohibits:

• Camping within two blocks of an elementary, middle or high school.
• Camping within two blocks of any shelter citywide.
• Camping in any park.
• Camping in the Wildland Urban Interface.

Signs notifying that camping is not allowed will be posted near shelters and parks, the city said. A notice to clean up current encampments will be left for 24 hours before crews come to sweep an area.

All councilmembers approved of the ordinances except Clarrissa Cervantes, who said she believes the orders will harm people "that are already in a very challenging place."

Dr. Chris Obert, CEO of Path of Life Ministries, agreed with Cervantes.

"I want to speak in support of public, peace, health and safety," Oberg said. "We have enough research to know that we cannot criminalize our way out of the crisis. We have enough experience to know what happens when we sweep encampments and tag tents in our city."

Oberg pointed out that the last time there was a sweep in the Riverbottom, homeless residents simply found another place to set up camp. That's why, she says, the Massachusetts Avenue area has become an encampment.

She suggested passing an emergency ordinance to turn empty buildings into "crisis housing."