Homelessness

Point Lomans Have What It Takes to Help the Unhoused

December 1, 2023 by Source

By Joni Halpern

There have been many times in the past when community advocates for the best interests of the Point Loma community have needed the support of residents of other San Diego communities. The retention of Dana Junior High School is only one example.  We needed support from other communities to prevent the school from being sold to developers who planned to replace it with almost 300 condominiums.  We succeeded in our efforts, because other communities joined us.

However, had it not been that other communities were targeted to lose their schools to developers, we would have been unable to make the argument that other communities should support us, because their residents widely believed that neighborhoods like Point Loma, La Jolla, and other constituencies of affluence did not care one whit about any community but their own.

The truth is, every community needs the support of others — all of us in this city, all of us in every neighborhood need each other’s support. 

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The ‘Back-and-Forth’ of H Barracks

November 29, 2023 by Source

Even though the issue has dropped from the cameras of our local TV stations, H Barracks is still with us. Mayor Gloria has not changed his plans and those in the community of Point Loma have not changed their minds.

Here, is more on the issue, a letter to the mayor from the Peninsula Planning Board and Gloria’s position, as stated by his representative.

First, a report of the “famous” meeting of the PCPB on Nov. 16. from KPBS:

Point Loma community members sent a letter to the city of San Diego opposing a plan to turn the site known as H-Barracks into a homeless shelter. The site would temporarily house 300 to 700 people experiencing homelessness, according to the city.

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Peninsula Planners Come Out in Support of ‘Sunbreak Ranch’ Plan for San Diego’s Homeless

November 29, 2023 by Source

In a letter addressed to Mayor Gloria and Councilmember Campbell on November 16, the Peninsula Community Planning Board came out and endorsed the controversial Sunbreak Ranch plan for the region’s homeless.

Here is the text of the letter:

The Peninsula Community Planning Board (PCPB) endorses Sunbreak Ranch’s innovative plan to address the homelessness crisis in our community. Sunbreak Ranch, a nonprofit organization, aligns with our community values and offers a comprehensive solution to make a lasting positive impact on the lives of unhoused individuals in the City of San Diego.

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Local Media Coverage of the ‘Point Loma Revolt’

November 17, 2023 by Source

Here is local coverage by TV stations on Thursday night’s “Point Loma Revolt,” at the monthly meeting of the Peninsula Community Planning Board.

7SanDiego

As San Diego struggles with shelter bed availability for the homeless, people in the Point Loma community are speaking out against the city’s plan for a new shelter near Liberty Station that could accommodate hundreds. Dozens of residents showed up to the Peninsula Community Planning Board’s (PCPB) meeting Thursday night at the Point Loma Library to express their opposition to a proposal that would turn Barracks H, a 5-acre lot on the southeast side of Liberty Station next to the airport, into a mixed-used homeless shelter.

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Peninsula Planners’ Ad Hoc Committee to Present City With Request for Alternative Site for H Barracks at Meeting Thurs., Nov.16

November 16, 2023 by Source

by Dave Schwab / sdnews.com / November 14, 2023

Concerns were vetted, and the mayor’s office fielded questions, about the City’s proposed conversion of the H Barracks site near Liberty Station for homelessness services at a Peninsula Community Planning Board committee meeting on Nov. 9. Kohta Zaiser, deputy director of community engagement for the mayor’s office, presented on the project and held a Q&A with the planning group’s Ad Hoc Committee.

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Reader Rant: ‘If the Homeless Were at H Barracks, They Wouldn’t Be in Park Restrooms’

November 7, 2023 by Source

More on the Discussion about city plans for “H Barracks”

By Anonymous Commenter

I begin with this historical note. When the Naval Training Center closed, there was a federal law (I think it was McKenny-Vento) that required cities who were taking over federal military base property to include facilities and housing for the homeless as a priority. So plans to provide transitional housing for individuals and families who were homeless were publicized.

First, Point Loma residents voiced their fury, using the same arguments that we now hear of theft, needles, drugs, madness placing their children at risk. However, at the heart of Point Loma’s concern was their own dislike and fear of the homeless and their fear of property values being adversely affected.

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Mayor’s Rep Responds to Concerns About Unhoused San Diegans at ‘H Barracks’

November 6, 2023 by Staff

At the most recent monthly meeting of the OB Town Council, a member of Mayor Gloria’s office tried to allay people’s concerns and fears about a homeless facility being established at “H Barracks.” Kohta Zaiser addressed the issue at the October 26 meeting of the OBTC by saying the entire concept and idea is “in the very early stages.”

H Barracks is the site of a former public safety training facility near the airport, nestled behind hotels and across the boat channel from the Liberty Station cultural and commercial complex in Point Loma.

The city has floated the idea of a potential plan to house hundreds of homeless people at the site. The current structures have been abandoned and will be demolished, and there are plans to build a pumping station built in about five years as part of the city’s Pure Water program to clean recycled water into drinking water.

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Why People Oppose a Homeless Facility at Barracks H

November 3, 2023 by Source

Here’s the text of a petition that opposes a homeless “camp” at Barracks H near Point Loma. (The petition is misleading in that it calls the proposed site “Liberty Station”.) It was started by Derek Falconer and as of this posting, has garnered 3862 signatures.

by Derek Falconer

Last year, at our local Little League field, my 7 year old son encountered a homeless man in the public bathroom without pants who had soiled himself, was mumbling incoherently, and had a needle in his arm.  My son was very shaken as a result of being exposed to such tragedy at such an innocent age.  

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Is It Too Soon to Get Upset About City’s Plans for Homeless Shelter at ‘Barracks H’?

October 27, 2023 by Frank Gormlie

Some Point Loma residents are upset about the city considering a plan to create a mixed-used homeless shelter site on a 5-acre city-owned plot of land near the airport — called “Barracks H.” They took their case to the media last week and have set up an online petition for their cause.

Vacant buildings on the site have for years been utilized for firefighting practices – and some of the buildings have already been demolished. From NBC7:

According to the city’s Homeless Shelter and Solutions Strategy, the site could have traditional shelters, but also potentially include a safe sleeping parking lot with tents and a safe parking lot for people to sleep in their vehicles. … the proposed timeline has the site opening as early as summer of 2024.

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City’s Homeless Encampment Evicted Disabled Woman In Middle of the Night

October 24, 2023 by Source

By Geoff Page

This is an account of a disabled homeless woman who was tossed out, at night, from the city’s homeless encampment at the city’s Operations Maintenance Yard at 20th and B. She was left to fend for herself huddled against a fence with a few of her belongings in the dark and the drizzle of a Tuesday night.

This writer met Jane – not her real name – last Friday, October 6, during a visit to the camp. She had contacted The Rag around noon desperate for some immediate help because she was about to be kicked out of the camp that day. Jane is disabled because of issues with a leg making walking difficult.

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New Homeless Camping Site Near Balboa Park Is Too Isolated and Without Permanent Utilities

October 9, 2023 by Source

By Geoff Page

The Rag had occasion to revisit the city’s homeless parking lot camp site at the City’s Maintenance Operations Yard Friday morning, October 6. During that visit, a couple of surprising bits of news were discovered. It was learned that the city is building a new, bigger campsite and that the city has obtained an extension on the existing parking lot site permit.

Checking the news media following the visit did not reveal any information about the new campsite or the extension for the current site. On Saturday, October 7, however, there was a brief mention in the Union Tribune about the mayor’s press conference on Thursday, October 7. During that conference, the account related the following about the new site.

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‘Community Roundtable on Homeless Strategies & Solutions’ — Wed., Sept.27

September 25, 2023 by Source


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San Diego Joins Camping Ban Case Review by US Supreme Court

September 19, 2023 by Source

On Monday, in a closed session, the San Diego City Council voted 6 to 2 to join a city in Oregon that is asking the US Supreme Court to weigh in on the legality of its camping ban. After yesterday’s vote, San Diego will file an amicus brief, or a written submission with legal arguments and recommendations about the case.

San Diego is only joining the case as an “amicus curiae,” or a “friend of the court.” This means the city isn’t party to the case, but can get permission to submit briefs and arguments supporting the city in Oregon — Grants Pass. Of course, San Diego has a reason as it just recently implemented its own camping ban.

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Bill Walton: ‘Todd Gloria Has Lied to Us’

September 15, 2023 by Source

By Bill Walton/ Times of San Diego / September 15, 2023

The nightmare continues. When people treat you like they don’t care, believe them.

Todd Gloria, in his more than 3 1/2 years as mayor of what used to be America’s Finest City, has lied to us. He lied to us about who he is, what he’s done, and what he’s going to do. These lies make us distrust him and his homeless policies. Todd Gloria’s ongoing misinformation propaganda campaign promoting the terrific job he’s doing is contrary to

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As South San Diego County Cities Enact Camping Bans, the Unhoused Will Be Pushed to the Border. Now There’s an Idea – A Short Satire

September 1, 2023 by Frank Gormlie

When the city of San Diego enforced its ban on homeless encampments, neighboring cities like Chula Vista experienced an influx of unhoused people.

Sebastian Martinez, the executive director of a Chula Vista-based nonprofit that provides homeless services for the South Bay, told 7SanDiego:

“We’ve already seen, even in the weeks leading up to the actual announcement of San Diego’s camping ban, a huge influx of folks, folks that aren’t from Chula Vista, National City or IB.”

And now Chula Vista, the county’s second-largest city, is considering its own homeless camping ban.

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Gloria’s Homeless Encampment Didn’t Survive Hilary

August 21, 2023 by Source

Vic, a 61-year-old unsheltered man, helped others staying at Mayor Gloria’s homeless encampment to move out of the Golden Hill safe campsite before Hilary hit. Vic took the photos.

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Point Loma Bakery Locks Door During Business Hours Due to Disruptions by Unhoused People – Customers Need to Ring Bell

August 14, 2023 by Source

A Point Loma bakery has announced that they are in “lock down until further notice” due to disruptions by unhoused people at their business.

Phatties Bake Shop in the 4100 block of Voltaire Street will still be open during business hours, but customers need to ring a bell for admittance. The bake shop continues to be open to the public daily from 7 p.m. to 2 p.m.

The owners say that they’ve been dealing with unhoused people stealing products, destroying property, coming in and screaming, and even one entering the bakery armed with a crowbar.

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Unhoused Caretaker of Point Loma Native Garden to Move On … Into a Home with Plans to Launch Bridge Between Housed and Unhoused

August 11, 2023 by Source

By Dorian Hargrove and Brian White / CBS8 / August 10, 2023

Michael Garvey rakes the dirt path at the Point Loma Native Garden in Ocean Beach. He cleans the area, removes leaves and weeds, wipes the wooden benches, and supplies treats to the dogs who go for walks in the garden. But soon, Garvey will not work at the small garden any longer.

Garvey is not a city employee who has been transferred to another job, he is a homeless senior who has been unhoused for nearly 40 years and has lived in the park for most of the past two years.

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San Diego Mainstream Media Parrot City’s Account of Homeless Camp Site

August 10, 2023 by Staff

By Geoff Page

On Monday, August 7, The Rag requested a tour of the city’s “hot lot” camping site at the City Operations facility as a follow up on The Rag’s two previous stories about the site. Some of the media had previously requested a site visit but had been rebuffed on privacy grounds. The Rag decided to try anyway.

Three hours after the email requesting the tour, the city responded informing The Rag about a media event scheduled for the next day, Tuesday, August 8. A link was provided that brought up an invitation for the media to tour the site. It was dated the same day as The Rag’s email, Monday, August 7.

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OB Rag Refutes Mayor Gloria’s Tent Count at ‘Hot Lot’

August 7, 2023 by Frank Gormlie

The OB Rag is refuting Mayor Gloria’s count of the number of tents at San Diego’s official homeless encampment, otherwise known as the city’s “first safe sleeping site” or “hot lot.”

Last Wednesday, August 2, the Rag posted reporter Geoff Page’s account of his “revisit” on Tuesday, Aug. 1 to the city operations yard at B and 20th. He wasn’t allowed inside — as no media have — so had to rely on views of the encampment from the hill just to its east. Page reported that there were 55+ tents altogether.

Then Mayor Gloria announced on Thursday that as of Wednesday night, August 2, 111 people slept at the site and were staying “in 93 tents,”

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The Rag Revisits Gloria’s ‘Hot Lot’ Homeless Encampment

August 3, 2023 by Staff

By Geoff Page

It has been three weeks since The Rag’s story on the city’s homeless encampment at the city’s Central Operations Station. The hot lot. A return visit was in order to see if the facility was doing any better after all of the criticism in the media. Sadly, not much better at all.

There have been changes. During the last visit, the facility consisted a large fenced area with one interior fence. There was a large area for tents and a small area for a trailer, restrooms and wash stands. The trailer appears to be an office.

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The Twists and Turns of Mayor Gloria Over Smart Streetlights and Homelessness

August 2, 2023 by Source

By Michael Smolens / San Diego Union-Tribune /July 30, 2023

A political heat dome is hovering over Mayor Todd Gloria on a couple of fronts. The mayor is supporting smart streetlights, with cameras and license plate reading technology, but has faced the ire of some privacy advocates, who point to his earlier comments about reining in use of surveillance tools.

Similarly, Gloria has been hounded about his approach to homelessness since almost the beginning of his administration two and a half years ago.

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Food Is Running Out at OB’s Loaves & Fishes Pantry

July 27, 2023 by Frank Gormlie


KPBS ran a story yesterday about dwindling supplies at OB’s food pantry run by Loaves & Fishes, which is supported by six different churches in the OB-Point Loma area.

People gather and wait for hours at Sunset Cliffs and Saratoga Avenue for food distribution to begin.

But Patrick Swanner, the pantry coordinator for Loaves & Fishes, told KPBS:

“This is the first time since I’ve started that I’ve actually been worried about feeding people.”

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‘The City Has Done a Lousy Job of Setting Up the First Camping Site’

July 12, 2023 by Source

By Geoff Page

By now, most folks have probably heard about the tent camping site the city set up for the homeless. The reviews have not been favorable. The Rag decided to have a look.

The site is located at the city’s Central Operations Station, 20th and B streets. This is a long facility as can be seen in the photos. The camping site is at the far northeastern end, 1,145 feet from the front entrance. That is how far a resident would have to walk just to reach B St.

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Slim Majority of City Council Finalizes Their Ban on Tent Encampments

June 28, 2023 by Frank Gormlie

On Tuesday, June 27, the San Diego City Council approved the City’s controversial “Unsafe Camping Ordinance,” which bans tent encampments in certain public areas of the city in its second and final vote on the measure.

The exact same line-up of council members voted for and against it as they had back on June 13.

Reportedly, once the city launches a Safe Sleeping Program that would allow for more than 500 tents at two sites near Balboa Park –the first one is expected to open by July 1st on 20th and B St. — enforcement of the new rules would begin 30 days afterwards.

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Most Comprehensive Survey Ever on California Homeless Crisis

June 22, 2023 by Source

By Marisa Kendall/ KPBS – CalMatters / June 20, 2023

Losing income is the No. 1 reason Californians end up homeless — and the vast majority of them say a subsidy of as little as $300 a month could have kept them off the streets.

That’s according to a new study out of UC San Francisco that provides the most comprehensive look yet at California’s homeless crisis.

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LA Mayor Has Moved 14,000 Homeless Off the Streets in Her First 6 Months

June 20, 2023 by Source

By Ruben Vives, Doug Smith / Los Angeles Times / June 14, 2023

More than 14,000 people experiencing homelessness have been moved off the streets during the first six months of her administration, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass reported Tuesday.

About 30%, or 4,332, acquired permanent housing. An additional 10,049 people were placed in interim housing through city and county programs from December through May, Bass said — a 27% increase over the same period the year before.

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A Slim Majority of San Diego City Council Approves Controversial Ban on Homeless Encampments

June 14, 2023 by Frank Gormlie

New Ordinance Is Very Majestic for It Not Only Bans the Poor from Camping on Public Land, It Also Bans the Rich from Camping on Public Land

Late last night, a slim majority of the San Diego City Council approved a controversial homeless camping ban — that was amended with some changes.

After hundreds of people testified over four hours either in Chambers or online — most of whom opposed the proposed ordinance — and after another 6 hours or so of staff presentations and debate, Council members Marni von Wilpert, Joe LaCava, Stephen Whitburn – the author of the proposal, Jen Campbell, and Raul Campillo passed the ordinance. Council members Sean Elo-Rivera, Monica Montgomery Steppe, Kent Lee and Vivian Moreno voted against it.

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The Law, in Its Majesty: King Todd’s ‘Unauthorized Camping Ban’

June 13, 2023 by Source

By Mat Wahlstrom

Today, June 13, the City Council will vote to make appearing unhoused in public illegal. Euphemistically called a ‘unauthorized camping ban,” its purpose is to pretend to solve a problem by making it invisible.

Despite winning election largely by campaigning to solve the homeless crisis that undid the political prospects of his predecessor, Todd Gloria has doubled down on Kevin Faulconer’s policy of all stick and no carrot. Cynically or not, yesterday even Faulconer called out this latest effort

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As County and Downtown Hit Record Highs of Unhoused Citizens, San Diego City Council to Consider Mayor’s Plan to Restrict Homeless Encampments

June 9, 2023 by Frank Gormlie

As San Diego Mayor Gloria called for the City Council to pass an ordinance on June 13th restricting homeless encampments throughout the city, recent counts of the county and downtown’s unhoused population show record highs.

A count conducted in January found a record high 10,264 homeless people throughout San Diego County, including 5,171 living outdoors or in vehicles. The results of the Jan. 26 count represent a 22 percent increase from last year’s count of 8,427 homeless people.

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