San Bernardino residents concerned over large homeless encampment at Perris Hill Park

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KABC) -- San Bernardino residents are growing frustrated with the number of tents and homeless encampments that have gone up at one city park.

According to one resident, a few months ago, there were only a handful of tents at Perris Hill Park. Now, there are more than 150.

"It looks like Skid Row," said one resident who lives on E. 21st Street. "It's bad at night; they play their music sky high."

That resident, who didn't want to be identified, said someone from the park even tried to break into her home recently around 9 p.m.

"He was beating on the door, shaking the door, trying to get in. I said, 'What do you want?' and he said, 'Let me in! Let me in!'"

Another resident, also choosing not to identify herself, said she's too afraid to bring her children to the park, even in the middle of the day.

"I actually would come here to the park with my kids, but now I can't bring them around because of the homeless," she said. "Even the middle of the park with the skateboarding, my son loves to go there, but now he can't go."

So why the sudden rise in the number of homeless encampments at city parks? According to a city spokesperson, a recent district court ruling that prevents the city from removing them may have exacerbated the problem.

In August 2023, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against the city on behalf of several homeless people staying in city parks, alleging that city officials improperly seized and destroyed their property, and had not provided reasonable accommodations to homeless people with disabilities.

Then, in January 2024, a U.S. District Court judge granted the ACLU a preliminary injunction, ruling that they had "established a prima facie case that the city ... seized and immediately destroyed personal property that belonged to people experiencing homelessness."

The judge ruled that city officials are currently prohibited from removing any homeless encampments, unless the city "crafts and presents a lawful revised policy regarding homeless encampment cleanup operations, and if that revised policy is approved by the court."

A city spokesperson tells Eyewitness News that such a resolution is "imminent," and should be announced shortly.

But even if the city is once again permitted to remove homeless encampments, while it might be a relief to local residents, it's not going to be a permanent solution to the problem.

"The need is so great," said Pastor Paul Jones from Independent Trinity, who helped organize a food distribution operation at Perris Hill Park for low-income residents.
Jones said the sky-high cost of living is driving many people out of their homes-even people who current have jobs.

"There's a security guard who lives out here (at Perris Hill Park)," said Jones. "They have to decide what they're going to pay. Are they going to pay their rent? Are they going to pay their light bill? Or are they going to be homeless?"