San Diego’s Version of “Clean Streets Not Mean Streets”

A San Diego Councilmember is proposing that if the city builds a permanent homeless shelter to provide enough beds for homeless people in the downtown area, then the SD Police would be able to “ticket” people who do not access the shelter. They call it “sleeping tickets”.

Last year, the city of San Diego stopped issuing tickets to people on the streets for “illegal lodging” when homeless advocates sued the city stating this practice was unconstitutional. Like most cities in the country, this is a struggle between law enforcement/city officials wanting to clean up the streets going against advocates who call the actions “mean” because there are not enough shelter beds

It is estimated that 220 people sleep in the city’s temporary winter shelter, and 100 are turned away. That means the city needs to provide enough shelter for at least 300 people.

This reminds me of the op-ed piece I wrote in the LA Times in May, 2002 called, “Going For Clean Streets, Not Mean Streets.” My premise was that a jurisdiction should be able to keep their streets clean, but only when they provide enough housing or shelter.

San Diego is trying to put this into practice. They want to build enough shelter for the people on the streets, in exchange for keeping their streets clean and secure.

Let’s see if the infighting among advocates, law enforcement, city officials, business, and community leaders can overcome their petty agendas, and find a solution that will actually help people get off the streets, along with keeping their streets clean.

(Pic from http://www.wildnatureimages.com/)