San Diego's camping ban may push homeless people to the riverbed, where encampments have been rising [View all]

[justaprogressive]

If you look down at the San Diego River from a bridge or sidewalk, only greenery may be visible. Much of the land, from East County to Mission Valley, is obscured by thick foliage.

At a public meeting in Santee earlier this year, one resident expressed bafflement that anyone was supposedly camping near the water.
Yet descend even a few feet, and miniature towns can appear.

The foundation counted 95 active encampments by the river at the end of July, right as police began enforcing San Diego’s camping ban. That was more than double the total in late 2019, before the pandemic appeared to trigger several increases of people living along the main waterway or in connected tributaries throughout San Diego and Santee.

An encampment may comprise a single tent or multiple hand-built structures spread around a 25 meter area, meaning several people may live at each site.

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/homelessness/story/2023-09-03/san-diego-camping-ban-homeless-riverbed-encampments