KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
City, county and law enforcement officials cleaned up the Santa Clara River wash, aiming to remove illegal encampments and improve residents’ safety, officials said Monday.
Sponsored Articles
Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies were working alongside city officials to eliminate homeless encampments in the Santa Clara River wash in Canyon Country late Monday morning.
“The focus of the program is to guarantee the safety of the individuals at the encampments,” said Community Preservation Manager Daniel Rivas. “They start fires because they’re camping, and that can result in danger for residents and those at the encampment.”
Working alongside representatives from a Bridge to Home — a local nonprofit that provides resources and services for the homeless — a regional contractor and local sheriff’s deputies, the Community Preservation program posts 72-hour notices for the encampment individuals to vacate.
Following that allotted period, the contractor moves in and disposes of any remaining trash, according to officials.
“While we’re out there we have representatives from Bridge to Home with us, and they educate the individuals on the services that are available to them,” said Rivas. “When we come back to do the cleanup three days later, they’re not there. What is left behind is trash and waste.”
The pamphlets and information handed out by a Bridge to Home to the encampment individuals concerns support resources and housing services available to them, according to officials.
Bridge to Home operates a temporary homeless shelter in Santa Clarita throughout the winter, but the recent influx of homeless encampments has increased due to the shelter closing March 15.
The city does the encampment cleanups once a month in order to assist in the health and safety of these individuals, along with attempting to eradicate the trash that these encampments accumulate in the river. The city’s Environmental Services goes out once a year to clean up portions of the river.
For more information about Bridge to Home, visit their website here.
Now do you see why the increased tax for the homeless was a bad idea? THEY DON’T WANT GOVERNMENT HELP!
Did you read the whole article, Mark Rener? There is an increase in encampments after Bridge To Home’s temporary shelter closes after the winter. This means that… uhhhhh YES THEY DO WANT GOVERNMENT HELP. Maybe the tax will provide enough funds to keep the shelter open year-round so they don’t pitch camp in the river wash anymore.
Besides, there’s simply not enough information in this article for you to conclude that “they don’t want government help” or that the tax was a bad idea. Cite some real data and maybe you’ll be taken seriously.
If they wanted government help then why did they stay away when the Sheriff showed up?
Just because somebody keeps his distance from cops doesn’t mean he doesn’t want help. Any one of those officers could nail a camper for municipal infractions (e.g., trespassing) on a whim. That’s why they stay away. It’s pretty clear from this piece that many homeless do seek government help in the form of shelters, but not necessarily in the form of the sheriff’s dpt.
So there goes your argument.
Housing is just too expensive and there are not enough good jobs for people low in academic stature.
Very sad that they are being driven further into the mountains and wilderness as city expansion continues.