In a bid to mitigate costs for its extensive homeless cleanup and relocation project, Lompoc’s government is prepared to declare it is in a “shelter crisis.”
The announcement is expected to come at the next City Council meeting on Oct. 2 and will open the door for tens of thousands of dollars from the state’s Homeless Emergency Aid Program (HEAP). City Manager Jim Throop told the Sun the city planned to pursue other grants and potentially federal dollars.
“We still need to have other partners help us out,” he said, “for a city of our size to take on something like this … that really involves more than just the city of Lompoc.”
The cleanup of the riverbed, along with the added expenses of moving the homeless and accounting for police officer overtime, is estimated to cost roughly $500,000.
Police Chief Pat Walsh praised Santa Barbara County’s efforts thus far in the city’s homeless project, which resulted in the relocation of nearly 100 people out of the nearby Santa Ynez Riverbed to a triage center offering services and, in some cases, housing.
“The county has stepped up huge for this,” he told the Sun. “They haven’t written a big check, but they’ve sent all their people to help with this and they’re pulling out all the stops.”
Agencies representing Santa Barbara County at the triage center include the Public Defender’s Office, Social Services, Animal Control, and Behavioral Wellness and Public Health. The county declared its own shelter crisis on Sept. 11 to access HEAP funding, and on Sept. 18, its largest city, Santa Maria, followed suit.
Once Lompoc declares its own crisis, more funding should open up for the city, which will allow it to hire contractors to help remove large and dangerous debris from the riverbed.
“There’s hundreds of tons,” Throop said of the trash.
Chief Walsh previously ruled out any chance for a community-led, volunteer cleanup day involving citizens going down into the riverbed to help officers and city staff. He told the Sun once the more hazardous areas were cleared, however, he had no problem with such a community effort near the airport, where the terrain is flatter and easier to navigate.
“What we were talking about before is on the riverbank where it is pretty steep,” he explained. “We were tromping around there yesterday and we were falling all over ourselves. You take a tumble down that bank, you’re gonna feel it.”
