Berkeley Moves to Expand Homeless Encampment Sweeps in More Aggressive Approach

Berkeley is set to take a more aggressive approach to homeless encampments as soon as next month after the City Council approved legislation on Tuesday allowing sweeps even when shelter isn’t available.

Councilmember Rashi Kesarwani, who represents northwest Berkeley, authored the resolution in response to two persistent homeless encampments in her district. It passed on an 8-1 vote, with only Councilmember Cecilia Lunaparra opposed.

“This is not a camping ban citywide,” Kesarwani said. “It is saying that we will enforce specific encampments when they pose a fire, serious health or safety risk. And we had to put forward a policy if we want our city staff to have the direction that they need.”

However, when asked during the meeting, homeless services coordinator Peter Radu said there is nowhere in Berkeley where camping would be legal under the resolution language.

Kesarwani’s proposal allows the city to authorize sweeps without shelter offers if an encampment poses a fire or health hazard or sits in the way of traffic or maintenance work. Previously, Berkeley had to provide shelter before being able to clear an encampment.

The vote came just hours after attorneys for a group of businesses and property owners filed a lawsuit alleging the city has created a public nuisance by allowing several large encampments in West Berkeley — including those cited by Kesarwani in introducing her legislation.

It responds directly to a recent Supreme Court decision that allows cities greater leeway to fine or jail people for camping on public property, even if there isn’t enough shelter available. While the number of shelter beds in Berkeley fluctuates, Radu said there were fewer than 20 available beds as of Tuesday morning.

Around 450 Berkeley residents remain unsheltered in 2024, according to the resolution.

Kesarwani amended a portion of the resolution on Tuesday night to remove language that explicitly refers to arrests and citations of unhoused individuals — though those options are still available.

“I would not support arresting or citing people for sleeping on the street, but I do believe we should hold everyone to the same standards,” said Councilmember Igor Tregub, who voted in favor of the resolution. He added that experiencing homelessness doesn’t automatically shield someone “from the consequences of unlawful behavior.”

The near-unanimous vote came over the fierce opposition of dozens of unhoused residents and their advocates, who condemned the council’s actions as essentially criminalizing sleeping outside. Berkeley Homeless Union officers Yesica Prado and Gordon Gilmore said they plan to take legal action against the city.

“The conditions you describe in this resolution will simply be recreated in a new place,” said Olivia deBree, a nurse who provides medical care to Berkeley’s two largest encampments.

In its lawsuit against the city, nine West Berkeley businesses and landlords pointed directly to lawsuits from advocates for people experiencing homelessness as one reason the city has failed to act.

“It was time to even the playing field and to put pressure from the other direction,” said Ilan Wurman, an attorney for the plaintiffs. “We wanted them to know that this lawsuit was going to happen and that we expect more than just talk for a change, but actual results.”

The timing of the suit — filed just as the City Council took up Kesarwani’s proposal — was no accident, he said.

It seeks an injunction requiring the city to clear three camps: one in the Harrison Street corridor, one along Codornices Creek and a third on the west end of Dwight Way.

The suit relies largely on the city’s own reports to argue that the camp in the Harrison Street area has, in the words of Berkeley’s city manager, “posed both very dangerous living conditions for the people living in them, and serious impacts to the neighboring businesses, residents, and general public.”

According to an August 2023 report from the city manager’s office, those hazards included discarded hypodermic needles, dead animals, spoiled food, human feces, bottles of urine, “and other unidentifiable liquid and waste products.” City inspectors also noted that camp structures and debris blocked sidewalks and extended into the street.

In addition to having to confront the conditions described in the city’s reports, the plaintiffs cite safety concerns arising from encounters with people living in the encampments.

“In one recent incident, a woman came into the (Fieldwork) brewery asking for free food,” the complaint reads. “When the manager on duty offered help, she left only to return two minutes later with a 10-foot metal pole swinging it at customers and employees; she was chased out of the building by customers and ultimately arrested by police.”

Wurman said the city has all the authority needed to take action, “and all that is missing is political will.”