San Rafael council signs off on camping rules

New rules governing the size and location of camps of homeless people in San Rafael are set to take effect next month, as friction persists over the largest encampment in the city and county.

The amended ordinance, which was vetted and unanimously supported by the City Council at a public hearing in April, passed on a second reading Monday with no discussion. The ordinance takes effect June 5.

“The City believes that this approach is one that recognizes both the humanity of those experiencing homelessness and the needs of all community members,” Vice Mayor Eli Hill said in a statement Tuesday.

The ordinance will prohibit camping within 100 feet of playgrounds and within 10 feet of public utility infrastructure.

The amendment adds a prohibition on camping within 250 feet of schools. It overwrites the original requirement to space camping areas 200 feet apart, and instead enforces only a 10-foot buffer around each site. The 10-foot requirement also applies to private property, such as businesses.

Campsites can be up to 200 square feet for a single person and up to 400 square feet for up to four people living together, which doubles what was allowed under the previous ordinance.

“These new regulations will aim to preserve the accessibility and cleanliness of our shared public spaces while also supporting the safety of those individuals experiencing homelessness,” Hill said.

“The goal of the ordinance is to provide a regulatory framework that will withstand legal challenges so that we may focus the City’s efforts on longer term strategies to house presently unhoused people and to ensure that local businesses and community members can thrive,” he said.

John Stefanski, assistant city manager, said the homelessless team is meeting with campers to inform them about the new ordinance.

Separately, the city has initiated an enforcement process to address a number of unpermitted structures that are encroaching on public property. In the last month, the city has worked to gain voluntary compliance by providing campers with new tents and other supplies, Stefanski said.

The new law comes after the city learned it secured a $5.99 million to state grant to address the camp in the Mahon Creek Path area, where 65 to 70 people are living.

In its application, city staffers committed to placing at least 46 of those campers in permanent housing by June 30, 2027, and having the remainder of the people living there on their way to permanent housing.

The city plans to use the money to hire three housing-based case managers and one bilingual outreach worker. The funds also will be used to provide interim housing for some campers by paying for motel rooms or buying tiny homes.

City officials have not identified a site for a new sanctioned encampment area, Stefanski said.

Neighbors of the Mahon Creek encampment say there have been too many conflicts with campers, and more needs to be done now to make the community feel secure.

City staff confirmed that in the past three months, there have been 63 emergency calls for service to the area. Out of three tent fires, one that happened on Christmas Eve resulted in the occupant being injured, city officials said.

Business owners said occupants of the camp have harassed staff and customers, throwing objects, including glass, metal and knives at their establishments.

“Our safety is at risk,” said Christine Miller, owner of Marin County Roofing Co. Inc. at 250 Francisco Blvd. West, near the encampment.

Miller said it appears that many in the camp do not want help, and she questioned how the city chooses to invest money.

Nonprofit services providers lauded the updated ordinance as a tool — designed with compassion in mind — to reach a vulnerable population in need while city staffers devise the plan for interim housing.

“Our goal is to have every single person at that camp get housed,” said Christine Paquette, executive director of the nonprofit St. Vincent de Paul Society of Marin.

Paquette said the ordinance provides safety and dignity to the campers while also ensuring community and environmental safety. Paquette said having an encampment means that people in need are in a centralized location that makes it easier for case managers to locate and help clients get on a path toward housing.

Mark Shotwell, executive director of the nonprofit Ritter Center, agreed.

“We should have enough shelter and housing for people so that no one is in an encampment,” Shotwell said.

Shotwell and Paquette said that despite a perception among neighbors that the homeless residents are uncooperative, a survey earlier this year indicated that many of them do want help.

Shotwell said the strategy to create interim housing takes time, but it is the most humane way to tackle the issue.

“Shelter living with people in a dorm setting isn’t for everyone,” Shotwell said. “People who experienced trauma or abuse are terrified to go to those type of settings, but those same people will go into interim housing, where they have a locked unit and can have privacy, dignity, safety and security.”

Meanwhile, a lawsuit triggered by the issue at the Mahon Creek encampment remains unresolved.

Anthony Prince, a California Homeless Union attorney participating in the San Rafael lawsuit, said the group wants to continue settlement talks after failed attempts over the past couple of months.

“We were making progress so we took the position that we should try again,” Prince said.

City officials said they plan to file a motion to dismiss the case this week.

City officials said they are working with the business community and encourage those who feel unsafe to call the city’s SAFE team of crisis response professionals at 415-458-7233. Police officers have also increased patrols in the area.

“Approximately 350 San Rafael residents experience homelessness on any given night, and the City has made ending homelessness one of its key strategic goals and objectives,” Stefanski said in an email.

“Like all California communities of its size, San Rafael must apply its limited resources and leverage intergovernmental and community partnerships to create housing, including interim housing, and alternative shelter options,” he said.