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Annette Brecheisen From: Subject: Pleasanton City Clerk solicitation /panhandling From: Mike Marsh Sent: Thursday, March 09, 2017 10:32 PM To: Mayor and City Council c citycouncil @cityofpleasantonca.gov> Subject: solicitation /panhandling Dear City Council, SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL Provide City Council After Distribution of Packet 3_- Date I am sending this email in regards to your Work Plan Priority Workshop to be held on Tuesday March 14th. I will likely not be able to attend in person and want to voice my opinion on one specific matter. This matter is the increasing number of panhandlers soliciting for money in the city of Pleasanton. Over the last couple of years I have seen the number of solicitors in the city continuously increase. The fact that this number continues to increase is alarming to me, as I see them constantly in the same general areas and I am sure that you see them as well. I see people hand over money and food, but whenever they get food all they do is put it on the ground in a pile and when they leave the food pile stays there. We have turned a blind eye to this problem for too long and it is continuing to grow as I see new people coming in every couple months adding to the ones already here. I wondered why the Police Department had not done anything about this, but then I look at the municipal codes that the city has I realize that the Police Department is powerless in dealing with this growing problem. I have worked in the city of Oakland for the past 10 years and I have seen how bad this problem can become and how out of hand it can get. I have seen "tent cities" pop up all over the place and this is not something that I would like to see in this city. I have seen first hand the filth and waste associated. Some of that waste is already starting to manifest itself in our city as it is clearly evident where they set up shop by the waste they leave behind. I have personally seen in Oakland the homeless that will break into cars in order to steal some spare change and any valuables left out in plain sight. I have seen the needles left behind from getting their high that become a health hazard to everyone. I have seen buckets of urine and human feces spread on the sidewalks. While this may sound extreme I can promise you that it is not, and if left alone we will allow these same scenarios to come to fruition in our city. I am not naive enough to think that crime and drugs do not already exist in our city, but I do not want to open the door to more. I do not wish one day to go the Safeway on Bernal and see a tent on the sidewalk, I do not wish to go to the mall one day and see 2 or 3 tents set up, because if this happens it will only get worse. With that said, I urge you to adopt a municipal code that empowers our Police Department. The PPD does an incredible job of protecting us given the laws that they are able to enforce as defined by the California Vehicle and Penal codes. Now lets give them some help where those fall short. They lack the necessary violations to stop all panhandling. So I urge you to think ahead, look at the big picture and strictly prohibit any and all solicitation, vending, panhandling on any and all city sidewalks, center medians and streets without a permit. Vendors are required to have a permit to solicit door to door, I do not see why this should be any different. There are a number of resources that are available to the homeless in order to help them get back on their feet. Lets direct these individuals towards those programs and away from our streets. Thank you, Mike Marsh Highland Oaks 1