ESCONDIDO, Calif. — People in Escondido reached out to CBS 8 with safety concerns about encampments along the Escondido Creek in an area known as "the jungle." CBS 8 is Working For You to find out what is being done to address the issue.
“The encampment in the ‘jungle’ is one of the largest I’ve seen,” said Chris Bouchard, who lives in a nearby neighborhood. "Tents, tarps, where it meets the street, you see shopping carts filled with trash, trash everywhere. I’ve seen homeless people passed out on the side of the road.”
Bouchard told CBS 8 that people from the creek bed are breaking into his cars and stealing things out of his driveway and side yard.
“It’s a tough situation. I feel trapped and unsafe in my own home," admitted Bouchard. "It’s hard, you know, I have a pregnant wife and a year-and-a-half-year-old kid, and not to be able to walk out your front door feeling comfortable is no way to live.”
CBS 8 reached out to the Mayor of Escondido, Dane White, to get his take on the situation.
“Wow, it’s out of control," said Mayor White. “Undeniably, it is a huge issue that certainly needs to be resolved.”
Mayor White said one challenge for a massive job like this is resources. He sequestered estimates for both the cleanup and fencing installation, which would be about $6 million dollars.
One thing that will help is the recent passage of Measure I on the November ballot. The additional one-cent sales tax in the city will bring in another $20 to $30 million in revenue for public safety needs such as addressing encampments.
"I think the average person looks at this and thinks, ‘Just kick people out, clean it up, and fence it off, like what are you waiting for?’ But we do have to follow certain processes, and we are in that process," said Mayor White.
Another hurdle for city staff is the environmental process they have to go through. Since the creek is a waterway, they have to follow specific guidelines.
“It is going to be a huge lift with multiple agencies and partnerships," said Mayor White. "We are in the process right now of exploring those partnerships and making sure we are doing what we’re supposed to through the environmental process to make sure we’re not doing anything illegal on our part.”
Mayor White told CBS 8 he expects action to be taken sometime early next year.
At CBS 8, we are always Working for You and our community. This is a station promise that we will go the extra mile to solve a problem our audience can’t solve themselves. We want to hear your ideas on how we can cover and help our community. If you have a story idea, please email us at workingforyou@cbs8.com.