Residents press council on encampments; code enforcement outlines monitoring, legal options and beautification plans

Multiple Garden Grove residents told the City Council during oral communications that homeless encampments near the 22 Freeway and Newland Avenue had grown and were creating safety and property‑damage concerns.

Speakers from the public — including Kyle Mason, Paul Keat, Linda Towers, Patty Dawson, Aziz Ali and others — described trash, drug paraphernalia, an unsecured hole in a chain-link fence, fires, a recently discovered body, vandalism and theft. Several asked for clearer follow-up from the city after residents speak at council meetings and for faster action to secure the freeway buffer area. Linda Towers and others said they had provided the city with letters, photos and a management-company complaint about nearby camps and asked when previously approved security fencing would be installed.

Councilmembers and staff did not dispute the residents’ accounts; instead they asked staff to coordinate responses and follow up. Mayor Pro Tem Joseph (Joe) Dovin and Councilmember Cindy Tran said staff would ensure the residents heard back, and Councilmember Tran reported she had been coordinating on-site visits and a ride‑along with police and other staff to address specific neighborhood complaints.

The council then received a detailed presentation from Code Enforcement Supervisor Rafael Avila and Community Development staff. Avila said code enforcement has reorganized into five geographic enforcement areas with one assigned officer per area to increase efficiency. He reported the unit consists of nine full- and part‑time officers plus three volunteers; staff said they currently monitor 40 vacant lots and abandoned buildings and are exploring legal remedies such as receivership, nuisance abatement or civil injunctions in particularly problematic cases.

On sidewalk vending, Avila said the city conducted a multilingual education campaign in 2024 and then elevated enforcement in August 2024 with the Orange County Health Care Agency; since July 2024 the department had 169 interactions with unpermitted vendors and has established an administrative-citation process. Regarding tobacco enforcement, Avila said the city recently entered a tobacco-enforcement Memorandum of Understanding with the California Department of Justice and has completed 54 tobacco inspections since January, with coordinated minor-buy enforcement planned with police.

Avila described beautification plans that couple trash cleanup with community-engagement activities: the city will pilot three beautification events per year and has scheduled an initial Buena Clinton effort with city departments and nonprofit partners to combine graffiti removal, litter pickup, simple repairs and community-resource outreach.

Avila also presented caseload data: Code Enforcement received 2,723 citizen requests in 2024 and currently averages about 309 open cases per officer. Councilmembers praised the reorganization, discussed potential staffing increases, and requested return updates. Mayor Pro Tem Dovin asked staff to return with a progress update in about six months and suggested exploring additional staffing where needed.

Councilmembers encouraged residents to continue reporting issues, and staff said residents may submit evidence and photographs to the city clerk and to code enforcement; staff also agreed to ensure residents who submit written materials receive follow-up.