The Santa Monica City Council on Tuesday opted to postpone a vote on whether to ban outdoor, public sleeping as part of a broader effort to combat homelessness.
The main proposal would remove a current exemption in the anti-camping law that permits the use of sleeping bags, blankets, and bedrolls in public areas.
“It’s an attempt to clean up our streets,” Santa Monica Mayor Phil Brock told KTLA’s Lauren Lyster on Wednesday. “It’s nothing draconian – nothing onerous. But I feel that if you have someone you’ve offered help to four, five, six times and they won’t move off the street, then we need to somehow get them off the street, get them into treatment, get them into rehab.”
The affluent coastal city’s consideration of a camping ban follows a recent Supreme Court ruling that allows cities to make sleeping outdoors illegal. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, expressing frustration with the amount of spending on homelessness and limited results, has directed cities to clear homeless encampments.
Santa Monica has been acutely affected by the homeless crisis, with residents noting a surge in violent incidents involving transients on its beaches and urban areas.
Last Wednesday, police say a homeless woman attempted to kidnap an 8-year-old girl from the 800 block of the alley south of Maple Street. In June, a homeless man was arrested for attacking three women just north of the famed Santa Monica Pier.
In May, a 39-year-old transient was arrested for allegedly attacking a 73-year-old woman, leaving her with minor injuries. Bystanders also said the suspect had been seen trying to punch others in the area.
“We’re always a compassion-first city,” Brock said. “Right now, I know everyone says letting people lay on our streets in Santa Monica is compassion. It’s not. It’s neglect. And we have to change that scenario.”
The City Council is now scheduled to consider the public sleeping ban on Sept. 10.