Marin Must Stick to ‘Housing First’ Approach – Marin Independent Journal

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order to remove homeless encampments from public lands sets the stage for municipalities to follow suit.

But now is not the time for Marin to abandon the “Housing First” strategy that has proven effective in breaking the spiral of homelessness for many people.

According to county statistics, more than 750 homeless people have found accommodation under the county-wide Housing First initiative.

A recent survey of campers along the Mahon Creek Path campground in San Rafael found that most of those who responded were interested in leaving their tents and finding permanent housing.

The downside to Housing First is that there are not enough apartments in Marin to meet the need.

Work is ongoing on projects to solve this problem.

For those living along Mahon Creek, in downtown Novato Park, or along Binford Road, for the public frustrated and weary of tent and trailer camps, and for local officials seeking effective responses to this social dilemma (if not crisis), these apartments cannot be completed and made available soon enough.

Newsome can be counted among the officials looking for solutions.

Over the past few years, the state has spent an astronomical amount of money—$24 billion, by Newsome’s count—on finding humane solutions to homelessness. That includes grants to local municipalities to buy housing and support for local initiatives to get campers off the streets and out of parks.

The ability to remove encampments, enforce local “no camping” rules or parking limits has been hampered by a federal court ruling that legally tied municipalities’ hands, barring enforcement unless alternative shelter or housing is available. The rise of COVID-19 restrictions and lawsuits have further complicated the dilemma. In a 6-3 ruling in June, the U.S. Supreme Court gave state and local officials more authority to remove encampments, even if those campers have nowhere else to go.

As San Rafael has discovered, so-called “combing” camps is a limited solution; campers simply move elsewhere. Instead, later this month, the city plans to continue discussions about creating an approved campground using part of the Mahon Creek Path.

The county’s situation on Binford Road, where the number of campervans once exceeded 100, is partly the result of overnight parking bans in other parts of the county. The campers have simply moved and parked elsewhere, Binford – almost over the county line.

Newsome’s order calls for a humane approach to clearing campsites, providing adequate notice to campers, providing social counseling and temporarily storing their personal belongings.

Unfortunately, there is a lack of available and affordable housing.

Local officials say they plan to continue their housing-first strategy by moving campers off the streets and into apartments.

Newsome’s order gives them a tool, but they should remain focused on connecting with people who want to get out of tents and RVs and into safer, healthier and more secure housing.

This does not mean that officials should turn a blind eye to illegal construction, unsafe and unsanitary conditions. The responsibility of local leaders to protect the health, safety and well-being of the community extends to both those who have housing and those who do not. Problems with crime and the loss to others of the right to use public parks should not be ignored.

Newsome’s order should be a last resort. It may be needed to deal with campers who stubbornly refuse to move into housing.

For many, Marin’s Housing First’s strategies appear to be paying off, albeit slowly.

Christine Paquette, executive director of the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Marin — a longtime provider of meals and services to local homeless people — captured Marin’s approach well, saying that across our county, “we have more effective, humane solutions that don’t require bulldozers and arrests.”