Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Imperial Beach passes complete public sleeping ban

Paved and unpaved surfaces off limits

End of Dahlia Avenue in Imperial Beach - Image by Dave Rice
End of Dahlia Avenue in Imperial Beach

Imperial Beach has banned camping or sleeping in public with an ordinance that reaches into every last corner, from pavement to median, "including but not limited to dirt or landscaped areas."

The new law prohibits storing belongings on public property. Sidewalk vendors with permits aren't affected, but for the homeless, almost anywhere they sleep or park an overflowing bike or cart is off limits.

The city council voted unanimously to pass the code change on September 18, expanding the areas already regulated – beaches, parks, pier, and plaza.

"We want to make sure that the same concerns we have over sanitary conditions" in those areas is extended to the public right of ways, said city manager Andy Hall when the ordinance was first introduced.

Sponsored
Sponsored

The city explains it as a proactive safety measure. "We have seen the impacts other cities are experiencing from the unsanitary conditions," Hall said.

This year's regional homeless count found 12 people living on the street in Imperial Beach. But others think the numbers are larger. "We have seen a rampant runaway of camping," said Councilmember West.

The council authorized staff to look into regulations for camping at the beach, parks, pier ,and pier plaza at a meeting in June 2018. That led to the same ban in those areas, where the marine safety department found problems with visibility into and beyond the tents that regularly crowd the beaches, hampering police and lifeguards.

"Go down there on a busy day, you'll see hundreds and hundreds of canopies and tents," said Marine Safety Chief Stabenow.

Most agencies in San Diego have regulations for this, to allow a clear view, he said. So one change was that any tent must have two open sides to see in. Sleeping or camping was banned from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. for parks and other public facilities and from sunset to 7:00 a.m. for beach areas.

The new ordinance for all other public areas doesn't state the hours sleeping is forbidden.

Even if the law isn't strictly enforced against the homeless, it could bring lawsuits. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that cities can't prosecute people for sleeping in public when shelter beds are lacking, calling it "cruel and unusual punishment."

The case, which began in Boise, Idaho affects all of the Western states. Boise has petitioned to overturn the ruling and California cities, including Los Angeles and Sacramento, are joining them. Cities point to San Diego's hepatitis A outbreak to support the need for bans.

Councilmember Paloma Aguirre brought up the outbreak at an earlier meeting, saying her biggest fear is that "because of homeless encampments," Imperial Beach could face a situation similar to San Diego's – a huge hepatitis A crisis "related to unsanitary conditions."

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Tijuana sewage infects air in South Bay

By September, Imperial Beach’s beach closure broke 1000 consecutive days
Next Article

The danger of San Diego's hoarders

The $1 million Flash Comics #1
End of Dahlia Avenue in Imperial Beach - Image by Dave Rice
End of Dahlia Avenue in Imperial Beach

Imperial Beach has banned camping or sleeping in public with an ordinance that reaches into every last corner, from pavement to median, "including but not limited to dirt or landscaped areas."

The new law prohibits storing belongings on public property. Sidewalk vendors with permits aren't affected, but for the homeless, almost anywhere they sleep or park an overflowing bike or cart is off limits.

The city council voted unanimously to pass the code change on September 18, expanding the areas already regulated – beaches, parks, pier, and plaza.

"We want to make sure that the same concerns we have over sanitary conditions" in those areas is extended to the public right of ways, said city manager Andy Hall when the ordinance was first introduced.

Sponsored
Sponsored

The city explains it as a proactive safety measure. "We have seen the impacts other cities are experiencing from the unsanitary conditions," Hall said.

This year's regional homeless count found 12 people living on the street in Imperial Beach. But others think the numbers are larger. "We have seen a rampant runaway of camping," said Councilmember West.

The council authorized staff to look into regulations for camping at the beach, parks, pier ,and pier plaza at a meeting in June 2018. That led to the same ban in those areas, where the marine safety department found problems with visibility into and beyond the tents that regularly crowd the beaches, hampering police and lifeguards.

"Go down there on a busy day, you'll see hundreds and hundreds of canopies and tents," said Marine Safety Chief Stabenow.

Most agencies in San Diego have regulations for this, to allow a clear view, he said. So one change was that any tent must have two open sides to see in. Sleeping or camping was banned from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. for parks and other public facilities and from sunset to 7:00 a.m. for beach areas.

The new ordinance for all other public areas doesn't state the hours sleeping is forbidden.

Even if the law isn't strictly enforced against the homeless, it could bring lawsuits. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that cities can't prosecute people for sleeping in public when shelter beds are lacking, calling it "cruel and unusual punishment."

The case, which began in Boise, Idaho affects all of the Western states. Boise has petitioned to overturn the ruling and California cities, including Los Angeles and Sacramento, are joining them. Cities point to San Diego's hepatitis A outbreak to support the need for bans.

Councilmember Paloma Aguirre brought up the outbreak at an earlier meeting, saying her biggest fear is that "because of homeless encampments," Imperial Beach could face a situation similar to San Diego's – a huge hepatitis A crisis "related to unsanitary conditions."

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The vicious cycle of Escondido's abandoned buildings

City staff blames owners for raising rents
Next Article

Extended family dynamics

Many of our neighbors live in the house they grew up in
Comments
This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
Sept. 25, 2019
This comment was removed by the site staff for violation of the usage agreement.
Aug. 31, 2020
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader