Vallejo council pauses encampment cleanups around PIT count, directs city to coordinate outreach

The Vallejo City Council voted to pause most encampment cleanups in the weeks immediately before the Jan. 29, 2026 point‑in‑time (PIT) count and to extend a structured pause through Feb. 15 so outreach teams can find and connect people identified during the count.

Council Member Matias, who moved the measure, said the primary purpose is to protect the accuracy of the PIT count — a data point that informs state and federal funding. “We must do everything that we can to get as accurate of a count as possible,” said Eli Smith, a community volunteer and advocate who urged the pause during public comment.

The motion, amended to include weekly coordination meetings, increased trash‑removal activity by the city during the pause and a requirement that staff present a written plan to council in early February, passed on a council vote that left Mayor Sorensen, Vice Mayor Brueggenzer and Council Member Paul Maris recorded as opposing the motion. The motion text directs the city to act as the primary coordinator, require weekly reporting from nonprofit outreach partners, and include a post‑pause plan for resuming cleanups and accounting for costs.

Staff presentations before the vote stressed trade‑offs. Natalie Peterson, assistant to the city manager, told council the COC’s request is twofold: refrain from enforcement actions Jan. 1–30 so volunteers conducting the PIT count can locate people where they usually stay, and extend a follow‑up pause Jan. 31–Feb. 28 to allow outreach teams time to convert count contacts into services. City staff said they would continue debris removal and target ADA‑impacted sidewalks during the pause rather than conducting full encampment removals.

Outreach providers described how they would use the pause. Barbara Simpson, director of mental health services for Fourth Second, said her team proposed Monday‑through‑Friday outreach, with HMIS intakes and referrals to housing navigation during February, and asked for weekly coordination with the city to prioritize areas with little prior outreach. Deandre, the chair of the local continuum of care, said the pause would let volunteers use the PIT map to locate people and then provide targeted follow‑up and referrals to county and nonprofit services.

Opposition at the podium came from residents and business owners who said long pauses worsen neighborhood conditions and public safety. Opponents urged the council to limit the time off enforcement or require stronger city‑run sanitation and transport commitments. Council members pressed staff and the outreach leads for specifics — how many volunteers were signed up (staff said about 31 of an expected 75–80), how many encampments exist (staff estimated 80–100 active congregation sites among more than 200 reported locations), and how debris removal, porta‑potties and Recology coordination would be handled during the pause.

Council directed staff to: (1) assume lead coordination of the outreach response during the pause and to convene weekly meetings with nonprofit leads; (2) double or triple trash‑removal site visits during the pause to mitigate sanitation risks; (3) require weekly status reports back to council; and (4) present a plan in early February that includes service provisions, cleanup protocols, and an accounting of costs associated with the pause and the outreach effort. The council recorded the motion as carrying with three members opposed.