San Bernardino clears Perris Hill Park encampment

Following weeks of outreach, San Bernardino crews began a two-day encampment cleanup of the city’s Perris Hill Park last week.

This marked the first encampment cleanup in San Bernardino since a judge recently lifted an injunction that stopped such operations.

“We have compassionately cleared the Park and will be restoring it for use by our residents and families,” Mayor Helen Tran said in a statement.

On Thursday morning city staff members “began systematically reminding unhoused individuals that the 64.4-acre park on Highland Avenue was to be cleaned up for health and safety reasons and they would need to leave,” according to a city statement.

City agencies involved in the cleanup included the Housing, Public Works, Police and Animal Services departments, the statement reported. Homeless outreach workers, park rangers, representatives from the Salvation Army and San Bernardino City Unified School District and Burrtec sanitation crews also were part of the effort.

The cleanup staff worked with the individuals living in the park “to identify items that could be disposed, items that they would take with them, and items that the city would temporarily store for up to 90 days,” according to the city statement.

“This is a high priority. We wanted to make sure that our first cleanup went smoothly, and it did,” Acting City Manager Rochelle Clayton said in a statement. “The cleanup only took two days, but this operation has been underway for over a month.”

In the weeks leading up to the encampment clearing, the city and county staff along with area nonprofit organizations conducted multiple outreach events at the park to connect individuals experiencing homelessness with local service providers. Officials said city homeless outreach staff were at the park every day for more than one month.

The outreach efforts led to a noticeable reduction in the number of tents compared with the area prior to the encampment clearing, officials said. More than 30 unhoused individuals were placed in programs that included family reunification, drug rehabilitation, transitional and permanent housing and room and board assistance.

Shuttles transported the people who were living in the park to local hotels and shelters or nearby pharmacies to fill prescriptions, city officials said. Some of the individuals called friends and family to request help moving. Accommodations also were provided to disabled individuals who needed specialized assistance.

Since the January court injunction preventing the city from clearing encampments, the number of people living in Perris Hill Park dramatically increased, causing health and safety concerns for both people living in and visiting the park, according to the city.

As a result, officials announced that a large portion of Perris Hill Park will be closed through Dec. 1 for additional cleanup, landscaping, maintenance and repairs.

The Jerry Lewis Family Swim Center, tennis courts and Senior Center will remain open.

Officials noted that new signage at the park indicates operating hours, parking rules and the city’s camping laws.

“The city will be enforcing these restrictions at the park following the temporary closure,” according to the statement.

“I’d like our residents to know that this is just the first park cleanup we are doing,” Tran added. “More will be coming soon.”

Perris Hill is the largest park in the city. Additional features at the park include the Fiscalini Baseball Field, the 1,800-seat Roosevelt Bowl, the San Bernardino YMCA, tennis and pickleball courts, hiking trails and playgrounds.

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