New laws do not ‘criminalize’ homelessness, city manager says

Marinscope

Following a protest at City Hall last week from homeless advocates who claimed that Novato is “criminalizing” homelessness, City Manager Adam McGill was asked to make a “clarifying” report at the City Council meeting this week. 

McGill said the city is not criminalizing homeless with its new camping ordinances. 

“The ordinances are intended to protect the environment and services that are essential to the continuity of the government and provide reasonable regulations for those that are unhoused in using public facilities.”

He said that the council voted unanimously on the new laws and they “do not prevent camping by the unhoused during  nighttime hours on publicly owned land” Anyone can camp on public property so long as they are more than 50 feet away from “critical infrastructure.” 

“The ordinances do, however, prohibit daytime camping,” McGill said. 

The homeless hot spot in Novato is currently at Lee Gerner Park, a shady city park that straddles a creek and is bookended by a restaurant and the public library on one side, and a commercial shopping center on the other. A couple of dozen tents have been pitched there for more than a year. 

McGill said the ban on daytime camping, coupled with the 50-foot rule, is a fair community standard that allows everyone, even the homeless, to enjoy Lee Gerner Park. 

The city plans to enforce the new camping laws on or about July 9. 

He also said he wanted to “manage expectations” about Lee Gerner Park. After measuring the distance from the creek, there will be space still available for camping at the park. 

“So, any expectations that after July 9 that there will be zero evidence of the unhoused at that location will likely not be true.” 

There will be a reduction in tents there, he said, “but not zero.”

The angst generated in Novato over the presence and behavior of the homeless in Lee Gerner Park carried over to the public comment period where a handful of people praised the Novato Police for restraint in the face of verbal abuse by homeless leader Jason Sarris. 

In the altercation, described in last week’s Novato Advance newspaper edition, Sarris dropped the f-bomb on a Novato police officer who was going through the camp trying to help the homeless. 

Nancy Abruzzo told the City Council that the officer was to be “commended” for his restraint. 

A caller identified as “Les” said the confrontation of the officer by Sarris was “disrespectful” and his public threats should be a concern. “He’s going to be a danger,” Les said. 

Caller David agreed saying that Sarris “perhaps we need to do something” about his behavior. 

Sarris in last week’s Novato Advance said his yelling and cursing at police officers was the result of oppression. 

“Do you understand homeless people are going to be criminalized in Novato? The police were offering referrals to a shelter that doesn’t have more than 1 or 2 beds at a time. Is it fair for the rest of the homeless to be criminalized when there won’t be shelter beds available? The emotion behind the video was from someone who is feeling oppression.”

Melany Swanson told the Council during the public comment period that she is concerned the city won’t be prepared to clear out the park the day of July 9. She also said a homeless tent has cropped up in Pioneer Park and the homeless there are using a propane gas cooker, which she said is a danger. 

Mayor Pat Eklund assured caller Melany that the city does have a plan for July 9 and the Novato Police Department is well prepared. She also said the city is aware of the budding problem in Pioneer Park.