1 To: Sebastopol City Council
From: Ad Hoc Committee for the Unhoused (Diana Rich & Una Glass) Date: February 14, 2021 (for February 15, 2022 City Council meeting) Re: Agenda Item 19: City Council Reports
AD HOC COMMITTEE INTERIM REPORT
The Ad Hoc Committee had expected to provide a full monthly report to the City Council at the February 15 Council meeting, but was informed that the February 15 agenda was too full to accommodate an Ad Hoc monthly report. The Ad Hoc Committee will provide its next full monthly report on March 15, 2022.
The purpose of this interim report is to provide a brief summary of developments regarding the tasks assigned to the Ad Hoc Committee for the Unhoused.
RV VILLAGE DEVELOPMENTS: The RV Village is moving forward, with planned full move-in date of Tuesday February 15, as reported earlier to the City Council.
RV VILLAGE FRONT FENCE DESIGN
1. For a short period of time there was concern about the possible impact of litigation seeking to delay and/or prevent the opening of the RV Village. The litigation is still pending, but the Court dismissed the initial effort to prevent the project from moving forward.
2. A limited number of RVs and their occupants who were in particularly vulnerable situations on Morris Street were moved to the site early. In place in advance of their being moved to the site were the following:
a. Portapottie and handwashing station
b. Management to oversee and provide support
c. Temporary fencing installed, paid for by SAVS
3. The site has been cleared and prepared by owner St Vincent de Paul. 2 4. Redwood fencing is being installed by St. Vincent de Paul, and will be completed this week. The fencing encloses the full RV Village. On the sides and the back the fence is as tall as the City ordinance allows, which is 6 feet of solid redwood, topped by 2 feet of lattice. The front has been modified as required by the planning director, to be more appropriate to the existing neighborhood properties.
To the extent there is any minor final fence building that remains to be done after Tuesday February 15, the temporary fencing will remain in place. (
5. The Village has been named Horizon Shine RV Village by the intended residents, and an initial Village Council has been selected.
6. A professional security service has been retained and will be in place 24/7 beginning Tuesday February 15.
7. A 24/7 phone number available to all in the community will be in place by Tuesday February 15. The phone number will be posted on the gate at the RV Village.
8. The Village Project Manager has been selected, as has the Resident On-Site Manager.
9. Neighbor outreach is moving forward – the Community Advisory Committee met February 9th and plans on meeting again in approximately two weeks.
10. The 18 RVs intended to populate the Village have been identified.
11. The Village residents, as well as the Village Council, have been meeting weekly and will continue to do so.
12. Wrap around services are being lined up for the RV Village residents.
13. Utilities are in the process of being finalized. Water will be provided by regular water truck deliveries. Electrical needs to be modified, with temporary arrangements being made in the interim. Sewer is available on site, but SAVS has arranged a service to empty RV tanks regularly.
14. City Staff has been involved regularly in the planning process – fire, planning, engineering, building, and public works.
HORIZON SHINE RV VILLAGE COUNCIL
3 PARKING ORDINANCE: The Ad Hoc Committee for the Unhoused has been available as needed to the Police Chief as he moves forward to submit his new Parking Ordinance for its second reading at the Tuesday February 15 City Council meeting.
ENFORCEMENT ON MORRIS STREET: Enforcement of parking rules on Morris Street and surrounding streets is moving forward, consistent with the plan reported by the City’s Police Chief in prior City Council meetings. It is the Ad Hoc Committee’s understanding that the number of RVs on Morris Street has been reduced substantially.
As reported recently to the Ad Hoc Committee, that number had gone from over 30 reported in a December count to 20 the first week of February.
WCCS SUPPORT FOR MORRIS STREET AND CITY-WIDE: The City continues to benefit from the contract with West County Community Services. That contract provides the City’s unhoused with the services of outreach worker Jennifer Lake. She has continued to work with those on Morris Street and surrounding streets, and is now able to focus on those who are not moving into the RV Village. She also continues to serve the unhoused throughout Sebastopol, both those with lived-in vehicles and those without. Her efforts include helping to connect them with shelter, helping those who have vehicles get them registered and legal, and connecting all who are unhoused to additional supportive services.
ADVOCATES AND SAVS: Local Sebastopol advocates as well as SAVS workers are continuing to provide support for the City’s unhoused, on Morris Street and City-wide.
The New Year’s Warming Station held at Community Church was a notable effort by multiple groups in town to provide shelter for those most in need at a time when temperatures dipped below freezing. This one example of many daily efforts by our own Sebastopol residents to help the dire and worsening situation for Sebastopol’s unhoused.
SAFE OVERNIGHT PARKING: The Ad Hoc Committee is including here in this interim report substantial detail regarding the Safe Overnight Parking Program, in order to keep the full City Council informed of developments.
When the City Council created the Ad Hoc Committee for the Unhoused on October 5, 2021, one of the tasks assigned was to "provide support to WCCS in the initial stages of its delivery and coordination of services to the unhoused.” Specifically listed in WCCS’s services agreement with the City was the obligation to “facilitate communication/collaboration between the safe parking programs offered by various churches and other institutions” and to “help facilitate communication regarding offers of safe parking to the unhoused. Accordingly, as directed by the City Council, one of the tasks the Ad Hoc Committee has carried out is to provide support to WCCS in its efforts to facilitate communication and collaboration between safe parking programs.
The Ad Hoc Committee has been impressed by West County Community Services’ efforts regarding safe overnight parking in Sebastopol. WCCS has been working 4 diligently to support the existing safe overnight parking program at Community Church of Sebastopol, and also to assist two other churches that are exploring the idea of offering safe overnight parking. This support has included regular meetings facilitated by WCCS and attended by Ad Hoc Committee member Diana Rich, with the main agenda focused on addressing the questions and concerns of the various churches expressing interest, as well as helping them share information and resources to inform their decision-making process.
There are two additional churches that are considering implementing safe overnight parking programs. A third church is not able to offer its own parking lot, but is offering to assist one of the two that are considering making their lots available. None of these churches have made final decisions, but all are seriously interested. (The churches are not specifically identified here, to respect the internal decision-making by their congregations.)
Neither the City nor WCCS has contracts with any of the churches, and no contracts or formal agreements are foreseen. The churches realize that taking on a safe overnight parking program is a decision they and their congregation need to make independently.
Both the Ad Hoc Committee and WCCS have been encouraging and supportive of the efforts by the churches regarding safe overnight parking. Given the current number of vehicular unhoused in Sebastopol, all involved in these discussions agree that continuation of the Community Church program, as well as expansion to additional church parking lots, helps Sebastopol’s unhoused, and also benefits the greater Sebastopol community.
In discussions with the churches, they have indicated that they may be requesting reimbursement from the City for some minimal expenses associated with safe overnight parking, should they choose to move forward with implementation. Any such requests would be submitted by the Ad Hoc Committee to the full City Council for consideration.
WCCS has committed to continue to act as facilitator for City-wide safe overnight parking efforts. Specifically, in response to requests and concerns expressed by the churches attending the meeting, WCCS has stated its willingness to act as a continuing resource to help connect churches with vehicular unhoused to consider for their lots, and to provide churches (if requested) with legally allowed screenings of “parkers.” Decision-making control, over who will be accepted into a particular church’s program, as well as all other details of the program, will always be in the hands of each church.
As stated, each church will define the terms of its own program, but the basic parameters being discussed by the churches are the following: The church will select 3- 5 “parkers.” They will accept standard sized vehicles rather than RVs or similar larger sized vehicles. The parkers will be allowed to park in the lot overnight only. The church will offer a portapottie or access to indoor bathrooms. A volunteer lot monitor will drive through the lot each night and will report any unauthorized vehicles to the police. Our 5 police department will continue to provide responsive services, just as has been and will continue to be provided currently throughout our town.
All churches involved recognize the need to reach out to neighbors. They expect compassion and understanding, as well as some anxiety and trepidation. They are committed to being responsive to their neighbors. All involved feel confident that once the safe parkers are in place, and the neighbors realize that the impact is not as their anxiety might suggest, all will be reassured. WCCS and the Ad Hoc Committee have offered to attend neighbor meetings, to the extent any particular church feels that would be helpful. The congregants of Community Church have also offered to attend, so they can share their very successful experience with their well-established safe parking program.
TOWN HALL: The Ad Hoc Committee for the Unhoused was tasked with holding a Town Hall for the community. Originally the Ad Hoc Committee had planned on proposing a date in early March. The Ad Hoc Committee has reassessed and will be proposing a new date in late March or early April. That proposal will be included in the March 15 full report to the City Council.
CONCLUSION: As stated earlier, this is not intended to be a full report by the Ad Hoc Committee for the Unhoused, but is instead an interim summary intended to keep the City Council informed until the Ad Hoc Committee has the opportunity to submit a full report on March 15, 2022.