ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : Real Solutions for Homeless Issues

For most Orange County residents, the problem of the homeless is out of sight and out of mind. For a good number of the homeless, worried about predators, being out of sight is just fine.

Those holing up near freeway overpasses or in parks try to be as unobtrusive as possible. One reason is to escape crime. Another is to avoid arrest for violating ordinances against trespassing on private property or being in parks after hours.

Orange County’s homeless have been estimated to number 15,000, with perhaps 1,300 beds available to accommodate them. There have been some noteworthy attempts to provide more shelter, but progress has been incremental.

Talbert Regional Park, near the Costa Mesa-Newport Beach border, has housed several dozen homeless for a number of years. Several encampments are well-hidden, shielded by elephant grass 10 feet tall or higher.

But after complaints from neighbors, several public agencies have begun trying to change the situation. Their methods are admirable; if successful, they should be emulated elsewhere.

For weeks teams of social workers have patrolled the park. They have offered medical treatment where needed, interviewed those living there, and suggested shelters or low-cost rentals. The president of the Orange County Rescue Mission said one way in which Talbert was a bigger problem than some other spots favored by the homeless was its attractiveness to couples. Shelters are set up to handle men or women, not both. In exchange for a shelter’s roof over their heads, couples have to split up, at least temporarily.

Police joined social workers for a sweep through the park several weeks ago. They arrested only two people, one for a suspected parole violation, another for a suspected weapons violation. One police lieutenant said police were trying to balance the concerns of nearby residents with the desires of those living in the park.

That’s proper restraint on the part of police. The best solution clearly is to get real shelter for these homeless people. But without enough beds, it does little good simply to move them from one place to another, where they will try to stay out of sight until someone else complains.

The county has a Homeless Issues Task Force that is trying to find solutions. Some of those in Talbert work, but do not earn enough to pay monthly apartment rents in a county where the average rent has now soared past $1,000.

Cities should consider allowing builders of new apartment complexes to add several units if they agree to rent some apartments to those earning minimum wage. Another tack is making it easier for rundown motels to be converted into efficiency apartments for individuals. The problems of the homeless will not go away without a greater and more sustained effort by the county.