CHICO, Calif. - The City of Chico will begin their enforcement and cleanup efforts of the homeless camps at Teichert Ponds beginning next week.
In a press release sent to Action News Now, City Manager Mark Sorensen detailed the weeks-long process of talks and discussion between the City of Chico and the plaintiffs involved in the Warren v. Chico settlement.
The City of Chico initiated the discussion with the plaintiffs represented by the Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC) on December 21, 2022 to prepare for the then-imminent adverse weather conditions that would negatively impact the unhoused persons who were living at Teichert Ponds at the time.
According to officials, the City of Chico counted 54 persons camping at Teichert Ponds. As of December 21, there were 26 pallet shelters available and 29 open beds available at the Torres Shelter for a grand total of 55 qualifying shelter locations.
The City of Chico's position at that time was that it should be able to prevent people from entering Teichert Ponds while assessing the current occupants for shelter and assisting with property removal. Officials say that they would only enforce on those who would refuse to leave Teichert Ponds if there was enough shelter space available for them.
However, the LSNC's position was that there was too few bed spaces available to enforce on any of the homeless at Teichert Ponds and objected to the City's enforcement at that time.
The City of Chico says that on January 2, members of the Target Team found 52 individuals at Teichert Ponds with many vacant tents.The LSNC claimed that there was a higher number, which the City of Chico says is possible, as people would come and go from the site. However, the City said that based on past experiences, a very significant number of homeless would not go into shelter.
On January 4, there were 28 pallet shelters available and 24 beds available at the Torres Shelter, bringing the number of available beds to 52. The City of Chico was confident that their enforcement of Teichert Ponds would not fill all of the available shelter space. However, because of the perceived lack of qualifying shelter space, the City of Chico was prevented from enforcement efforts.
During an emergency hearing with Chief Magistrate Judge Kendall J. Newman on January 5, the City of Chico raised these issues with the judge. Chief Judge Newman denied the City's request and ordered the two sides to continue to meet so they would work out a solution.
After mapping the locations of encampments and the people within Teichert Ponds, the City of Chico proposed a smaller area for enforcement. The new area for enforcement included 40 campsites, which included several abandoned campsites, and 34 people.
The LSNC was provided notice on January 10. According to the City of Chico, the LSNC objected to the enforcement unless the City agreed to the following conditions:
- The City will enforce according to Plaintiffs’ counsel’s interpretation of the location of the red border line running across from 1500 Humboldt Road to 1422 Ridgebrook Way
- There are at least 45 available shelter spaces on the morning of Tuesday, January 17
Officials say that an agreement was reached by the City of Chico and the LSNC for the proposed enforcement location. The City of Chico began on-site noticing at Teichert Ponds on January 19.
Enforcement and cleanup of the campsites in Teichert Ponds agreed to by both parties will begin next week.
