Shelter Founder Attacks Homeless Policy Shift : Oxnard: The Rev. Fred Judy says the council’s bid to draft new guidelines may be in retaliation for facility’s suit against city.

The founder of an Oxnard homeless shelter on Tuesday blasted a City Council decision to establish a new policy on the homeless, charging that the move is the latest in a long line of attempts by the city to put him out of business.

Until now, Oxnard’s efforts to aid the homeless largely have consisted of helping the financially troubled Zoe Christian Center find a permanent site, city officials say.

The move by council members Tuesday to draft a new policy broadening those efforts is an attempt to bypass the shelter, possibly in retaliation for the facility’s lawsuit accusing city officials of plotting to shut it down, said the Rev. Fred Judy, who operates the countywide center.

“They are trying to sweep us away,” said Judy, who has long been at odds with city officials over homeless issues.

“It’s frustrating, especially when you have a new council and you think you’re going in a new direction, only to end up with the same old rhetoric and end up going down the same old road,” he said.

Oxnard Housing Director Sal Gonzalez, saying the city has given $112,000 to Zoe since 1987, said the shelter is still valuable, but the city is looking at other alternatives. “I think what the council wants to see is a broader focus than just a shelter.”

The council agreed Tuesday to establish a comprehensive, regional approach to the problem of Oxnard’s homeless.

The council said it wants to work with cities throughout Ventura County to help curb homelessness and scrape together money to fund programs and agencies that care for those without shelter.

“What we need is a more comprehensive plan,” Councilman Andres Herrera said. “We have to separate the shelter from the homeless issue.”

Oxnard has about 340 homeless people, the largest such population in the county, according to city staff members.

Staff members will draft a mission statement that outlines different ways to deal with the homeless problem, such as the construction of low-income housing and the creation of a citywide homeless task force.

The council’s re-examination of homeless issues came after Judy’s announcement earlier this month that he intends to move his shoestring operation to Oxnard’s La Colonia district.

Judy said Tuesday that he is moving forward with plans to combine the year-round shelter--the only one for homeless families in Ventura County--with Zoe’s facility for homeless women and children on Hayes Avenue on the western edge of La Colonia.

Judy said the move was forced by the city’s refusal to renew Zoe’s operating permit.

The permit was denied in 1989 after fire officials said the center was too near a yard where hazardous chemicals were stored. Judy said the center has lost $300,000 a year in federal, state and local grants since denial of the permit.

Zoe sued the city in October, accusing officials of conspiring to shut down the nonprofit agency because it is operated primarily by blacks and because it serves mostly African-American and Latino clients.

Although the case was dismissed on a technicality, Judy said Tuesday that the lawsuit has been amended and he plans to refile it this week or next.

“I think the City Council should be looking specifically at Oxnard before it goes branching out across the county to help the homeless,” Judy said. “What happens when you try this larger approach is that we get lost in the shuffle.”

But Gonzalez told council members on Tuesday that it was time to rethink the city’s policies on the homeless.

“The number of homeless persons in the city is growing and resources are dwindling,” he said.