The turn of the year holds more uncertainty than celebration for many unhoused residents in San Jose as they face imminent encampment sweeps. An estimated 50 individuals along the creek off Story Road are poised to be displaced starting Thursday, according to a report by NBC Bay Area. Residents like Marques Dwayne Dorsey, who's been on the housing waitlist for over a year, expresses the trauma associated with these sweeps, "If you don't pack up right away in these sweeps, sometimes they take everything," Dorsey told NBC Bay Area. The Santa Clara Valley Water District recently passed a law banning camping on its land, which affects Valley Water-owned areas, adding to the strain on homeless residents.
Meanwhile, the crisis has manifested as a headcount along a 12-mile stretch of Coyote Creek that is scheduled for a clean-up conducted by city officials and PATH workers, but results have yet to be disclosed; "Knowing how many people live along our waterways provides needed insight that will shape our interim housing and shelter strategies, helping us get our unhoused neighbors indoors faster by starting outreach early," Mayor Matt Mahan explained, as per San José Spotlight. San Jose must comply with the Clean Water Act lest they face fines, attributing roughly 90% of local waterway pollution to homeless encampments.
Homeless advocates are critical of the timing and efficacy of these actions, with Shaunn Cartwright of the Unhoused Response Group pointing out the disproportionate impact on seniors: "Almost 60% of the unhoused people who died last year were seniors, and I am sure there are seniors out here as well," Cartwright said to NBC Bay Area. The city is concurrently engaged in a race to expand shelter options, including tiny home villages and a sanctioned encampment near Watson Park, to move participants within 30 days to more stable temporary housing or permanent supportive housing, according to Jeff Scott, a spokesperson for the city's housing department, in an interview with San José Spotlight.
_-_jungle-dwellers.jpg){kind=link}