Homeless camp is out in lot behind Jerry’s Restaurant
Tony Ramos’ mornings are busy.
When the rest of the town sleeps, Ramos is just starting his
day, rising out of bed at 2:30 a.m. And the first thing he does
isn’t eating or walking his dog
– it’s working.
Grabbing a bag, Ramos will start his trek through the town.
Going through garbage can after garbage can or cleaning the debris
off the streets
– Ramos collects all the aluminum that he can.
Sometimes he doesn’t get much money, but other days he brings in
hundreds of dollars. But after a long day’s work Ramos doesn’t have
a warm house or bed to relax in
– instead, for seven months a year his home is a tent.
And it’s always on the move.
Homeless camp is out in lot behind Jerry’s Restaurant
Tony Ramos’ mornings are busy.
When the rest of the town sleeps, Ramos is just starting his day, rising out of bed at 2:30 a.m. And the first thing he does isn’t eating or walking his dog – it’s working.
Grabbing a bag, Ramos will start his trek through the town. Going through garbage can after garbage can or cleaning the debris off the streets – Ramos collects all the aluminum that he can.
Sometimes he doesn’t get much money, but other days he brings in hundreds of dollars. But after a long day’s work Ramos doesn’t have a warm house or bed to relax in – instead, for seven months a year his home is a tent.
And it’s always on the move.
He isn’t alone, though. Gathered around his tent, in an empty lot next to Jerry’s Restaurant, is another four tents. Next to those tents are a couple of baskets full of different items.
“One man’s trash is another’s treasure,” said Cindy Parr, the homeless shelter’s manager.
Those items don’t belong to Ramos, who is known as “Papa Smurf” because of his large, gray beard, but he keeps an eye on them when his neighbors are gone. It’s just part of the life of Hollister’s homeless.
The dirt lot is one of two homeless tent grounds in the city. The other is near the cemetery, said Parr, who helps look after the city’s homeless after the shelters closes in the summer months due to funding and the migrant worker arrival in the farming months.
The homeless are sent out into the streets to fend for themselves, Parr said. Most summer months consist of a rotation among locations in the city.
“They just go from point A to point B to point C,” Parr said. “Eventually, they do a full 360.”
Their current stay, in a vacant, dirt lot, is one of their longest in recent memory, Parr said. They have called the dirt lot home for nearly three months. But that’s not because people want them to stay.
Trees that blocked Jerry’s customers’ views of the small tent city were cut down earlier this year because people thought it would force the homeless to leave, Parr said.
Complaints have been filling up the voicemails of the police department and the city’s code enforcement office, asking for the removal of the setup.
The city’s Code Enforcement Officer, Mike Chambless, said it’s not that simple.
The dirt lot where the homeless reside is privately owned and it has been difficult to reach the owners, Chambless said. The city will tell the owners of the code violations on the grounds and ask to give the homeless a 30-day notice to leave.
“They are going to have to leave at some point,” Chambless said.
State law protects the homeless for 30 days after a notice is given to vacate the property. After the 30 days are up, they must be gone.
“It’s unfortunate that this occurs,” Chambless said, adding, “It’s something that I’ve been involved with for 20 years and nobody has been able to come up with a solution, so I’m afraid it’s going to continue to continue.”
Parr said she knows this but she realizes the homeless have no choice.
The homeless shelter is in the process of looking for a year-long home for the homeless, she said. Three years ago, they set in motion a five-year plan to have a year-round homeless shelter.
“We are in a position to do it but it’s not going to happen overnight,” she said.
Homeless advocates are looking for a piece of land to build on or an already constructed building to modify. But either way it will be a while before there is a year-round shelter. And with no other refuge, the homeless will just stay on the move during the summer months.
