One year after Fresno’s encampment ban went into effect, unhoused residents say the ordinance has changed how they live in Fresno.

“The only thing I know is that I know where I will be or what I’ll experience in a half hour,” said Amy, an unhoused individual. “They just made it harder instead of getting me out of here.”

Background

The ordinance, approved in September 2024, prohibits camping, sitting or lying on public places, including streets, sidewalks and alleys. City leaders said the law would connect unhoused people to services or shelter beds before interacting with enforcement.

In addition to limiting resting areas for the unhoused, the ordinance lists violations as misdemeanors, with possible fines up to $1,000 and/or a year in jail.

“This is about dealing with a subculture of the homeless who refuse to get help, doing drugs, engaging in criminal activity, harassing businesses and people in neighborhoods,” said Garry Bredefeld, who was a councilmember when the ordinance was passed.

The ordinance started after an Oregon case from the city of Grants Pass made it to the Supreme Court. The city had laws that would jail or fine people for sleeping in public places, even if they had nowhere else to go.

Unhoused individuals and advocacy groups sued the city, saying it wasn’t fair and that the city’s laws were cruel since there weren’t enough spaces at shelters.

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that Grants Pass could enforce these local ordinances and start removing homeless encampments.

Gov. Gavin Newsom echoed this by ordering that homeless encampments be dismantled from public view and encouraged cities to do the same. Fresno followed by passing their anti-camping ordinance.

Unhoused individuals describe their experiences under the ban as a year of frequent moves and uncertainty.

Sweeps and shelters

For safety and privacy reasons, the unhoused residents interviewed for this story declined to give their last names.

Amy said she feels more uncomfortable and anxious since the ordinance than prior to it. She attributes this to the police and the Homeless Assistance Response Team (HART), a task force dedicated to dealing with homeless-related issues and providing services to them.

Before the ordinance, some encampments lasted weeks or months, with those areas being preferred over shelters, according to unhoused residents. Now, they say those sites are dangerous.

Since the law went into effect, they report that camps are cleared more quickly.

“I don’t have anywhere else to go,” said Jayson, an unhoused resident in Fresno.

Several people said they often receive 24 hours’ notice or less before they must leave. Others said they sometimes receive no warning at all.

During cleanups, belongings such as tents and blankets may be removed. Both Jayson and Amy said that they try to leave before these things happen, and have both had stuff thrown away by police and those who remove encampments, such as HART.

Some said they have lost personal items during sweeps, which included clothing, photographs and identification documents. Residents said replacing those items has been difficult.

“I usually sleep one or two nights at these places because if they last that long, they probably will be shut down soon,” Jayson said.

Amy said nothing valuable to her has been taken, but has seen important documents like birth certificates being handled without care and animals being taken away.

Unhoused residents also describe challenges with shelter availability. While the city has added beds and built new tiny home villages, demand remains high.

Unhoused residents say they were told no spaces were open when asked to move. Others said they were offered beds, but only for a short stay. Others have even said they have heard or seen abuse in shelters.

Rose, who’s been unhoused for almost 20 years, said that she prefers living in encampments or by herself. She’s only stayed in shelters a handful of times, but not in years, and said a night in bed isn’t worth the risk.

“I’m not going to a shelter,” Rose said. “They don’t have room, and if they did, I still wouldn’t go after all the … sh*t I’ve heard.”

However, some unhoused people explained that personal circumstances make shelter difficult. They mentioned rules about separating couples, not allowing pets or living with strangers as reasons they avoid shelters.

They also mentioned that those with jobs often have non-traditional work hours, making obeying shelter rules like dress codes and curfews even more difficult. Amy, who has been unhoused since 2020, said she has a job, which makes it hard to stay in shelters since her schedule isn’t traditional.

Some unhoused residents say that the ordinance is damaging, but not entirely the problem. Buck has been unhoused for over three decades and said the ordinance is “really bad,” but not worse than it has been for the unhoused.

Buck said he hasn’t been stopped more by police or by HART than prior to the ordinance.

“It’s bad. … but so has the last few years,” Buck said.

He also said that he can’t blame the lawmakers or anyone who supported the ordinance, and understands that encampments can be perceived as “not good” for small and local businesses.

“I don’t want to be here, I don’t want to be around it, no one does,” Buck said. “[The encampments] can be gross and they can be dangerous.”

Buck also said that just because he doesn’t feel the negative effects of the ordinance, it doesn’t mean it isn’t an issue for someone or those around him.

Feeling a lack of empathy

While the city has promoted what it calls a “services first” approach, some unhoused people said they do not always receive an offer of shelter or treatment before being asked to leave.

Rose’s main concern is a lack of empathy from lawmakers, local agencies and people who pass her by.

“Just talk to me,” Rose said. “I’m a person, it goes a long way.”

Some feel that the services the city offers, like the Poverello House and Fresno Housing Authority, aren’t enough and that the people at these services don’t care about the unhoused.

“No one seems to care that we’re out here,” Rose said. “Not even the services they say we don’t use care about us.”

Despite having a job, Amy said she’s angry that she’s doing all the right things, but the ordinance doesn’t help her and stops unhoused people from getting housed and “off the street.”

“I have a job, I get a little [money],” Amy said. “But it would be nice if the [local] government helped. … it would be cool if it doesn’t see me sleeping on a sidewalk as a crime.”