Folsom addresses homelessness solutions, criminal activity

The city of Folsom addressed the rise in homelessness over the last two years at the Oct. 10 city council meeting through an approximately 2 1/2-hour presentation and public comment session. "The intention of this item is to educate because we know many in our community are concerned and we also know that some may not understand the complexities and legal boundaries of the issues correlating to homelessness," said City Manager Elaine Andersen. "Homelessness is a complex, complicated issue that is not easily solved. If it were easily solved, cities and counties up and down California would already be neatly checking boxes." Andersen said poverty, scarcity of affordable housing, trauma, domestic violence, mental illness, disabilities, unemployment and addiction contribute to homelessness. According to the Sacramento Steps Forward Point in Time Count (PIT) for 2022, there were 9,278 homeless individuals in Sacramento County, 2,614 of which were sheltered and 6,664 were unsheltered. This is a 67-percent increase from 2019. Folsom Police Lieutenant Chris Emery said the department does not keep an official PIT count, but they estimate there are 50 to 75 homeless individuals in the city, most of which they estimate are not from the area. Emery said some come because they "feel safe," and others come because they can charge electronic devices at outlets typically used for vendor events. He said they are addressing this by shutting off the electrical outlets when no vendor events are occurring. Folsom residents have grown concerned with the rising homeless population because of the risks of criminal activity. Resident and Monroe Salon owner Jackie Sellitti said she has considered leaving Folsom with her family due to the "dangers of the homeless." "We now have to keep our business locked during business hours and book by appointment only," Sellitti said. "This is costing us money at our business, and the safety of the people that I work with. … I personally have seen too many violent and illegal behaviors by the homeless in our community to list." According to Sellitti's husband, Mike Sellitti, an employee had a bottle thrown at them by a homeless person, which broke the glass window of their salon. He also listed multiple incidents he has witnessed involving the homeless population near their salon. Folsom Historic District Association Executive Director Judy Collinsworth addressed the growing concerns of local businesses. She describes that in her seven years as director, she's witnessed "little to no consequences for openly smoking pot or drinking in public," homeless living in the train depot restrooms, public nudity, assaults on merchants and "mentally unhinged individuals" screaming, cursing and threatening others. "Owning a small business is difficult enough without this added stress and cost in dealing constantly with these situations," Collinsworth said. Business owner Julia Shannon said the solution to the homeless who engage in criminal activity is to prevent it. "From our business perspective, prevention goes a long way, and prevention is a lot cheaper than repair," Shannon said. "I want to encourage our city to put together a really firm plan of prevention. What can we do to build the reputation in our community that we are a place to get help? We're not a place to hang out and cause a ruckus, and I think that reputation is what is going to make a difference and what's going to really move the needle." Folsom resident Janet Planck said she has had to deal with "at least a dozen camps" behind her house who exhibit "really bizarre behaviors." "It's not that these people are homeless, it's what they're doing," Planck said. Forest Mengen, a Folsom resident for nine years, said, "We moved here because we wanted to have our family in a safe city." Mengen has a son who is involved in Little League baseball. What he has witnessed at some of their evening practices "is simply unacceptable," he said. He said they have seen "broken crackpipes next to the dugout, a homeless man's dog biting at the kids, the kids coming out of the bathrooms with a homeless man with a knife in there," and more. Councilmember Mike Kozlowski responded to the many resident concerns by saying, "I think the thing that has come out with great clarity tonight is that there are symptoms that cause homelessness, and trauma that causes homelessness. And, there are people who happen to have had that trauma or have those symptoms or have those diseases find themselves homeless, who also engage in criminal activity, and we need to address the criminal activity first because it's the most important thing for all the rest of our safety." "The Folsom Police Department is tasked with many things, including keeping our community safe," Emery said. "We do this by following our mission: To serve with purpose, to relentlessly pursue criminal behavior, and proactively foster positive relationships. Our response to homelessness follows that mission." Emery also addressed that although sleeping on public land is not illegal, "Encampments have brought hazards, including warming fires, human waste entering waterways and trash. Certain areas within the city have been closed to the public due to fire dangers. When police encounter homeless individuals, or any individuals in these areas, they advise them to leave immediately." According to City of Folsom Code Enforcement Supervisor Pete Picardo, the need for camp cleanups has doubled in the last decade. To address this, the city partnered with abatement contractors Bio-One, Grey Construction, Junk King and 1-800-Got-Junk? "While being homeless is not illegal, certain conducts and activities are illegal, regardless of who is involved such as, for example, using or selling illegal drugs, assaulting or injuring someone else, obstructing the public right of way, making threats or damaging public or private property," City Attorney Steven Wang said. It is also not illegal to camp on public property or engage in "universal and unavoidable consequences of being human," like sitting, lying or sleeping, Wang said, if local jurisdiction does not have a sufficient number of indoor shelters to accommodate the homeless. Folsom Police reassured they continue to enforce illegal activities not covered by the federal decision. Mayor Rosario Rodriguez said, "I think what a lot of people don't know is it's not like we haven't done anything to do something about the problem with homelessness." Rodriguez said the council realized there was a lack of communication between organizations in and near the city of Folsom in 2021. So, they began meeting on a monthly basis to address homelessness. The city has partnered with numerous organizations, including non-profits such as Jake's Journey Home, Hope Cooperative, HART of Folsom, Sacramento County Heart and Powerhouse Ministries. These organizations are providing shelter opportunities for the homeless to keep them off the streets and resources to help those willing to accept help get access to the resources they need. According to Sacramento County Department of Homeless Services and Housing Director Emily Halcon, there is a shortage of almost 1,000,000 affordable and available rental units for extremely low-income households. So, they are providing support in the county through their Stay Safe Communities, which have 100 non-congregate cabins and focus on housing and services. "We want the people who are the biggest problems on the street making the most calls for service to not be on the street and to be inside. To that, we do not prescribe sobriety, we prescribe behaviors," Halcon said. "You have to behave correctly, but you don't have to test or be sober at the point in time. We engage for access in instead of trying to screen out. All of the services folks need are there, whether that be your daily living needs, your laundry, your food, security. But most importantly, all the services to help connect you back into housing or services, what's appropriate." "Seven-hundred beds when new shelter becomes available, 1,000 available now," Halcon said. Jake's Journey Home Founder Jeanne Shuman said their organization is "an all-volunteer, mobile response for wrap-around services. Unlike other programs, we have zero barriers for help." They provide assessments for program placement, food and clothing, referral services for addiction, mental health, school resources, veteran assistance and criminal record help, transportation resources and more. HART of Folsom President Liz Ekenstedt said their organization provides temporary shelter sites at different churches during the winter to provide safety, warmth, food, shower, "peacefulness of not having to deal with being out there in the winter," and connections to resources. During their 2023 winter site, they could hold 20 guests but averaged at 13 per night. Vice Mayor YK Chalamcherla commended the work of all the programs that presented at the meeting, saying, "I just want to sincerely thank, the non-profits especially, and everyone working on uplifting the homelessness." Councilmember Anna Rohrbough concluded, "I pushed to get this on the council, of course, because I've been hearing this for over a year now. … It's clear that there is great support for our nonprofits and we would like to do more." She said it is unfortunate residents' compassion is "waning," even for those willing to accept help. "I think we're doing our entire community a disservice."