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Why let homeless stay at campground?

Trash pulled out from the camp lines Highway 1 as vacationers drive by in RVs in January. A large group of homeless residents had set up camp along Highway 1 and the railroad tracks in Grover Beach, before being removed so that the Grover Beach Amtrak station could be renovated.
Trash pulled out from the camp lines Highway 1 as vacationers drive by in RVs in January. A large group of homeless residents had set up camp along Highway 1 and the railroad tracks in Grover Beach, before being removed so that the Grover Beach Amtrak station could be renovated. David Middlecamp dmiddlecamp@thetribunenews.com

My husband and I recently camped at Pismo North, a campground in the SLO area.

After arriving, a fellow camper advised us that the county had permitted five homeless camps (30 people that I counted) to live at the campsite while the Amtrak station in Grover Beach was being renovated.

I was, and still feel, devastated as this is a peaceful refuge to allow citizens to camp and not have the worries of all the problems that are involved. Numerous homeless people have mental disorders and other issues, and to surround families and children in the campsites brings a complete disbelief that the homeless were placed there.

I would hope that the county or city would be able to relocate these people to another location other than a state campground.

Aren’t there any other alternatives? I worry about the safety of ourselves and the children.

Jan Kenny, Simi Valley

This story was originally published February 29, 2016 at 8:07 PM with the headline "Why let homeless stay at campground?."

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