What's at stake?
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s Grants Pass decision, cities and counties are now stepping in to pass bans on camping in public spaces - a move meant to clear homeless encampments.
Fresno County will begin the process of joining the city in enacting an anti-camping law, while also withdrawing support from an affordable housing project on the same agenda.
The Fresno County Board of Supervisors will hold its first of two hearings to help create and implement an anti-encampment ordinance on Tuesday.
The anti-encampment ordinance aims to “protect the public health” of both housed and homeless residents by removing the camps and “establishing a clear process for abating unlawful camping on public and private property.”
The county’s proposed penalties include a misdemeanor charge, fines of up to $500 and up to six months in county jail. The City of Fresno is proposing up to $1,000 and one year in jail for violating their ordinance.
The ordinance will go into effect 30 days after the county ratifies it. The second hearing on the ordinance will be on Tuesday, Aug, 20 at the next board of supervisors meeting.
While the “preferred outcome” for the Board is to funnel campers to county supportive services, the agenda also includes an item that would withdraw county support for a controversial housing project meant to help formerly unhoused people in Old Fig Garden.
The Libre Commons is a proposed 86-home development with 42-units dedicated to people with mental illness or suffering from chronic homelessness. It would be located on the southeast corner of Shaw and Glenn Avenues.
The Commons project initially drew support from the county in 2022, when they agreed to submit an application to the California Department of Housing and Community Development for state funding — which eventually led to the county being awarded $11.9 million, contingent on a $9 million local funding match.
The project, estimated to cost $56 million to finish, could not find a local fund match. The City of Fresno also redirected their money away from the project after initially committing $3 million toward its completion.
The lack of funding has led to the county deeming the project as unviable, and the Board will now get to decide whether or not to continue to support the project.
Jessica Hoff Berzac, co-owner of UpHoldings, one of the project developers, said that a local match was never required, in an email to the county included in the agenda packet.
A letter from the developers’ attorneys at Holland and Knight, included in the agenda packet, underscores their understanding that the project remains financially viable.
Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer said that the allocation of money does not stop the city from supporting the project, and that future city funding could still be allocated toward the project in a statement dated in February.
The county would have committed mental health supportive services for the Libre Commons had the project gone through, according to the resolution.
Both the city and the county of Fresno’s anti-camp laws have said their primary objective is to help direct campers — primarily homeless residents — to supportive services and housing. Supervisor Brandau’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Berzac told Fresnoland that the developer had “no idea” of the county’s thoughts on withdrawing. She also feels the decision is risky given the future encampments resolutions and legal issues the county could face.
“Where are people going to go if we’re not prioritizing building permanent housing?” Berzac asked.
UpHoldings and Self Help Enterprises, the other developer, were notified last week of the item coming to the Board’s agenda, according to county documents.
Both agenda items are sponsored by District 2 Supervisor Steve Brandau.
County to dissolve farmland preservation advisory committee
Tuesday’s agenda also includes an item to eliminate the Agricultural Land Conservation Committee — an advisory board related to the county’s Williamson Act program — in what county staff say is a measure to create efficiency and dissolve a committee that creates unnecessary red tape.
The Williamson Act is a state law that provides property tax breaks for owners of farmland in exchange for them agreeing to not develop their property. It was designed to protect farmland from urban sprawl.
The ALCC was created in 1967 to advise on land to consider enrolling into the county’s Williamson Act program, with support from the department of public works and planning.
The ALCC meets about three times a year, according to the county’s report.
The ALCC dissolving would create a more efficient workflow, according to the resolution, as the county’s Department of Public Works And Planning would now be able to directly make recommendations to the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.
However, Fresno County eliminated support funding for the program in 2002, and decided to stop accepting new Williamson Act contracts in 2009.
If the ALCC is dissolved, the county’s department of public works and planning would directly make recommendations to the Board.
The ALCC is made up of seven committee members who represent groups like the US Department of Agriculture, the League of Women Voters and the California State University Agriculture Department.
The Fresno County Board of Supervisors will meet Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. at the Hall of Records, located at 2281 Tulare Street.
