Remaining people evicted from Concord homeless encampment
CONCORD, Calif. - Wednesday was the deadline for people to leave a homeless encampment in Concord that had been the source of numerous complaints by neighbors.
City crews arrived early to pick up debris and bulldoze the trash that was left behind. The encampment was located under the BART tracks along San Miguel Road. Police will now enforce a no trespass zone in the area. The encampment was responsible for daily calls to police and city officials by neighbors who reported blight, drug use, and fires.
Concord police Lt. Tamra Roberts said emergency accommodations were made at a local shelter to provide beds for the remaining homeless at the encampment, but all 15 remaining people declined the offer.
"We do know that because they didn't accept shelter beds they will go to different areas of the city and we have no plans to do anything about that until there might be health and safety issues at those encampments," Roberts said.
Reginald Robinson, who was forced from the camp, said he would not got to a shelter because he previously caught scabies there. Another man, Tampa Twuan, said shelter rules are too restrictive.
"You can't leave at a certain time, you’ve got to be back at a certain time and that's not really helping us," Twuan said. "We need a job. We need financial security."
Twuan helped a friend move her belongings before the sweep. He said the woman needed medical attention and was taken by outreach services to a hospital.
Contra Costa County brought a van to the site to offer medical services to the homeless before they left. One man said he received his second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. But many said the outreach services are a short term solution and do not help to solve the bigger issue of chronic homelessness. A group of people who left the site planned to move less than a mile away to another encampment site.
Homeless advocates denounced the demolition. Ady Olvera, a volunteer organizer with the Concord Community Alliance, and others urged the city council to postpone the sweep of the encampment at a council meeting Tuesday night. She said they were told by city officials that a position would be created and filled in the summer to deal with the homeless issue.
Concord homeless encampment packs up to meet deadline, has nowhere to go
Tuesday was moving day for some unsheltered people living in about 25 tents in a field under BART tracks, along San Miguel Road in Concord. Police say they have no shelter to offer the homeless and that there is evidence of fires and drug use at the encampment. Residents have also complained.
"I don't feel like they can wait until June," Olvera said. "They need to put a moratorium on these sweeps… provide the trash bins, the portable showers, sanitation services while that person gets hired. Do a parallel solution."
She and others like Jack Fliehmann visit the homeless regularly. He was out before down and served bananas and oatmeal to the homeless prior to the sweep. Fliehmann said he feeds two meals daily to roughly 50 people.
"The homeless are people just like your family," Fliehmann said. "They have names. They've got feelings. They're intelligent. If you want to have a great conversation, an interesting conversation, go talk to one of our homeless friends."