The Chico City Council voted this week to create an ad hoc committee to find new ways to address homelessness.
The motion to create the committee was brought forth by Mayor Kasey Reynolds and passed unanimously. Reynolds and councilmembers Mike O'Brien and Bryce Goldstein will serve in the group.
The city's current policy is to remove homeless encampments and direct campers to community homeless shelters, or face fines and arrest. That policy is outlined in the Warren v. Chico settlement agreement, which is currently under review by a federal judge.
The committee's goal is to find alternative solutions and policy ideas. It's also looking to collaborate with community groups and advocates who have long wanted to work closer with the city.
"Individuals that are service resistant, that may be suffering from addiction or mental illness, sometimes co-occurring – what are we going to do about them? There's a number that are persistently resistant to getting help, and we need to understand why that is."Mike O'Brien, member of Chico City Council
"We've received a lot of community feedback on the idea of a managed campground," said Goldstein. "[It's a] way of making sure that people who might currently be camped in the park or the plaza can get out of those public spaces, and into an area where there's more oversight, there's more hygiene services, and connections to behavioral health services like addiction treatment."
Goldstein said she also wants to look into a designated place for cars and RVs to park, since Chico has a large number of unhoused residents living out of their vehicles.
O'Brien said he wants the committee to look at solutions for unhoused residents who he said have refused care or shelter in the past.
"Individuals that are service resistant, that may be suffering from addiction or mental illness, sometimes co-occurring – what are we going to do about them?" O'Brien said. "There's a number that are persistently resistant to getting help, and we need to understand why that is."
O'Brien cited the Drug Court program as a point of inspiration. In that program, drug offenders sentenced in court were given the option to serve their time or go to a drug rehab facility.
"We're going to have a committee of people who often have different political views, and I'm looking forward to hearing their perspectives and working with our community members and staff to benefit our community."Bryce Goldstein, member of Chico City Council
Goldstein said she's excited to work with the committee across party lines, and to hear different ideas and potential solutions from its members and the public.
"This is something that's been a contentious topic for so long, and I think it speaks to a change in the way that our council is composed," Goldstein said. "Now we're going to have a committee of people who often have different political views, and I'm looking forward to hearing their perspectives and working with our community members and staff to benefit our community."
Goldstein also hopes the committee can help organizations like Safe Space and the North State Shelter Team navigate zoning laws and other red tape that have been challenges in the past.
The committee will have its first meeting soon at an unknown date, and members are set to bring findings back before the rest of the council in June.
Mayor Reynolds did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.
