Speaking at Fire Station 35 / SDPD Northern Division Wednesday morning, Gloria will join City Councilman Joe LaCava and police and fire officials to "highlight the impacts that homeless encampments are having on public safety and urge the City Council to pass the proposed Unsafe Camping Ordinance.''
Gloria has pushed hard for the ordinance — written by City Councilman Stephen Whitburn — in recent weeks, urging citizens to sign a petition and speaking on the issue at news conferences.
It would prohibit tent encampments in all public spaces throughout the city if shelter beds are available and would ban tent encampments at all times in certain sensitive areas — parks, canyons, and near schools, transit stations, and homeless shelters — regardless of shelter capacity.
"Encampments pose an immediate threat to public health and safety, for both the people living in them and people living, working or going to school around them,'' Gloria said ahead of the news conference. "those living in encampments are in constant danger of disease spread amid unsanitary conditions, violence and exploitation by dealers of deadly drugs.
"Encampments also frequently ignite fires that put the public and our first responders at great risk. The City Council must pass the Unsafe Camping Ordinance to protect the health and safety of all San Diegans,'' he said.
However, opponents say the ordinance would not only not solve the issue, it would essentially make being homeless illegal in the city of San Diego.
Gloria has proposed several in-city campsites to accommodate some people experiencing homelessness.
"This commonsense ordinance will be paired with a robust shelter strategy, which includes two new Safe Sleeping sites where more than 500 people stay in tents in secure areas with access to hygiene and services that will help them get on the path to permanent housing,'' Gloria said. "Letting people continue to live in squalor on our sidewalks is not showing compassion; it's showing indifference. We won't let that be the case in our city.''
The Safe Sleeping Program would be located in Balboa Park at the 20th and B Street lot and Parking Lot O. The program would also provide bathrooms, security, and other services for unsheltered individuals. Gloria said he expects one of the sites to open soon after the vote and another in the fall.
According to the Downtown San Diego Partnership's monthly count, a total of 1,958 people were recorded as homeless in downtown San Diego in April.
Amie Zamudio and Joanne Standlee, founders of the nonprofit organization Housing 4 The Homeless, expressed reservations but hoped for the best.
"We hope that these sites will include amenities and services that will meet our homeless population's critical needs,'' they said in a joint statement. "Safe camping sites mean nothing without substantive services.''
The City Council is set to vote on the proposed ordinance on June 13.
