Finding the Will to Help Homeless

There are no winners in the court case involving a Buena Park pastor in conflict with the city over allegations of zoning violations at a church assisting the homeless. Larger regional solutions to the problem are needed.

It was clear at the outset earlier this month that things were not going smoothly in Buena Park. An Orange County Superior Court judge ordered the eviction of 24 people living in a makeshift shelter outside Pastor Wiley S. Drake’s church. Then, last week at a court hearing pitting the requirements of the city versus the needs of the homeless, a prosecutor talked about repeated zoning violations. The defense characterized city officials as mean-spirited.

The trial of Drake over his repeated encounters with the city arguing in defense of building codes is not a pretty picture.

The rights of churches in conflict with local zoning have been at the heart of a national debate over religious freedom. A church’s collision with historic preservationists over a proposed church expansion in Boerne, Texas proved to be a test case for the 4-year-old Religious Freedom Restoration Act. In that recent case, the Supreme Court struck down Congress’ attempt to restore through legislative means a previous court standard for measuring the burdens that general laws can pose on religion. But while many church-state conflicts have their nuance, this one deals with the basic religious impulse to take care of the less fortunate.

That does not diminish the strong arguments of local city officials who want to maintain the integrity of local zoning. The case only brings into full view the tensions inherent in trying to take care of the underprivileged in an environment that is insufficiently geared to meet their needs.

There must be a better way. Orange County long has been under fire for its inadequate initiatives to take care of the homeless. There are too few beds to take care of too many people.

Drake has been addressing a small corner of the problem, but his efforts, inspired by a sense of calling, are at least something. The controversy points up the dire need for a more comprehensive and regional strategy for dealing with homelessness. That shouldn’t be all that difficult if the county will only summon the will to address it.