San Rafael staff propose administrative interpretation and phased prohibition on camping along Anderson Drive

On May 19 city staff presented an evaluation of the city’s camping ordinance and proposed two related staff actions: an administrative interpretation clarifying the definitions of 'public facility' and 'park' for enforcement purposes, and a resolution to prohibit camping along Anderson Drive between Rice and Lindaro Streets. The approach would be phased so that new camping along Anderson would be barred immediately and the full prohibition would take effect when the Marydale interim shelter opens, allowing outreach and transition planning.

Assistant City Manager Stefanski summarized enforcement data since October 2024, saying the city maintained a twice-weekly enforcement cadence and that warning notices, which initially spiked to about 15 per month, have fallen to roughly 4.5 notices per month; arrests remain low. Stefanski framed the administrative interpretation as a transparency measure that does not change the ordinance language but clarifies how staff will apply existing definitions to city-owned parks and facilities.

"Our enforcement data is telling what we'd say is an encouraging story…we saw our warning notices spike initially about 15 per month...but then over time we've been able to stabilize and get those numbers down to 6 and now around 4.5 total notices per month," Stefanski said.

Staff said the Anderson corridor has ongoing public-health concerns—trash, debris, human waste, and people stepping into the bike lane—so the recommended resolution would prohibit new camping now and place the full prohibition into effect when shelter capacity is available, so affected individuals can be offered the interim shelter.

Committee members and public commenters asked operational questions (current counts on Anderson, which one speaker estimated at 15–24 people), and requested guidance on where people may legally camp and what services will be provided. Commenters also cautioned against criminalizing homelessness and urged clear communication to prevent repeated displacement.

A public commenter, Gregory Andrews, asked for clarity on public review for the affiliated affordable housing project and raised a safety concern, saying he believed an individual from Anderson had since been charged with murder. Staff responded that 'vetting' in this context refers to relationship-building with partners and case managers rather than criminal-background checks.

"In terms of vetting, it's relationship building…we don't do credit scores…we don't do that," Daniel said, describing the city's reliance on partners and case management relationships to identify participants for the program.

Staff said maps of locations where camping is not prohibited—and the administrative interpretation—will be updated online and available physically at City Hall. They also encouraged continued coordination with Caltrans on right-of-way locations and noted the resolution is ready to go before council in late June or July.

Next steps: staff will finalize the administrative interpretation and bring the Anderson prohibition resolution to the council in the next cycle (June second meeting or July) and will update the public camping map online and at City Hall.