The homeless encampment on the cloverleaf at Highway 99 and Turner Road exit has been dissolved and the area was cleaned up by Caltrans on Monday, February 28. While this area has been of great concern for the City and residents, it is State Property managed by CalTrans. This clean-up required coordination from all agencies, as well as those providing services to the homeless, in order to make the process as smooth as possible.
Caltrans evaluates all encampments that are located on their property. They have a chart that is used to identify priority levels and this specific encampment on 99 and Turner was a Level 1 (highest priority encampment) due to the safety concerns of it being on a high-speed roadway, blind curve, the ability for trash/belongings to end up in the roadway, as well as fire hazards.
On Wednesday, February 23, the encampment was given notice of the cleanup. Salvation Army, Lodi Committee on Homelessness, and County Behavioral Health were all on scene Monday morning to provide services as needed. Many of the camp occupants had already left prior to the cleanup.
The City of Lodi has been working earnestly to address the needs of unsheltered individuals in Lodi, which is a lengthy process, but the City has made great progress. Over the past year, the City has received several grants and City Council approval to establish an Access Center and Emergency Shelter to house the unsheltered within our community and provide resources to assist them in gaining self-sufficiency (such as housing navigation services, job readiness training, mental health and substance use treatment, and many other services). While the Access Center project is underway, the City is looking at options for a temporary emergency shelter location to provide those resources in the interim.
We understand fixing this problem will create other problems, but the highest concern is that of the safety of both the homeless and the vehicles driving that circle. The unsheltered individuals will end up in other areas and as that occurs the City can work with them on trash pickups to keep their areas clear while working on the emergency center location.
If you would like to stay up to date on homelessness in the community or have opportunities to discuss solutions for those experiencing homelessness, you may attend the monthly Lodi Committee on Homelessness meetings that occur the first Thursday of the month via Zoom from 2:30 pm to 3:30 pm. This committee includes concerned citizens as well as local business owners. To be notified of posted agenda’s please visit lodi.gov, click the "Notify Me" button, and follow the steps on the page to subscribe to Lodi Committee on Homelessness updates.