Citrus Heights Letters: Sleeping in cars, neighborhood areas

Latest letters from Citrus Heights Sentinel readers include comments regarding recent updates to the illegal camping ordinances and neighborhood associations Area 2 and 6 combining.

Areas 2 and 6 combining
On Sept 11, 2024, during a public city council meeting, Mayor Karpinski-Costa and Councilman Tim Schaefer publicly disapproved of Areas 2 and 6 merging together, similar to how Areas 7, 8 and 9 combined to form CHASEN. (View city council meeting here)

Had either council members attended one of our monthly public meetings to express their opinions, we would have given them time to speak and taken their insight into consideration. But instead they chose to voice their disapproval during a public city council meeting, with Mr. Schaefer asking why we even have neighborhood areas. Our newly-appointed mayor even suggested that our decision prevents future persons from Area 2 from organizing themselves.

I can attest as a resident in Area 2 and one of the directors, we are not preventing anyone from organizing. These discouraging remarks from the council are uncalled for and misrepresent Area 2 and 6’s efforts to empower our neighborhoods for the greater good.

Two years after re-forming the Area 2 board of directors with REACH’s guidance, we, the directors, unanimously decided to officially combine with Area 6, since we were already working and meeting together. We presented the proposal to the Area 6 directors, and then to the general meeting for a vote. The attending members of both Areas 2 and 6 voted in favor of combining. This can be confirmed by reviewing the meeting minutes at the city’s website.
— Aaron Tweeton, Area 2 resident and director

Sleeping in cars? No.
These people also park on city streets. They move every 3 days or so to avoid ticketing. We see them all the time. They need to be given a warning the 1st time then hauled away after the 2nd or 3rd time. We don’t know who these people are much less know if they are medicines or not. They park near schools.
— Molly Charles, Carmichael

Why not allow sleeping in cars?
If someone wants to sleep in their vehicle, that they own, and is currently licensed to be on the streets then what’s the big deal? Just as long as they aren’t obviously camping. How about let’s try and use something that’s not so common anymore, COMMON SENSE. Please excuse me for yelling, I’m hard of hearing. I read that [several public commenters] cautioned the council. Now we have the “D” word, discriminatory, that’s hogwash. Racist most likely! That always gets the MSM attention.

We pay these officers in Citrus Heights pretty good money, I’ll have to do my homework and find out where they rank, but I’m happy with the service they provide and regardless of what [public commenters] say everything our officers do on a daily basis is discriminatory! They prioritize their calls. They meaning the department. That’s dispatch, the officers in the field, the officers in the dispatch center, and all the personnel who are standing by to respond to any emergency.

Let’s give our officers the option to just move on to a more pertinent call, but to note the time and place of this so called sleepyhead in his/her vehicle. Also in regards to sleeping in your vehicle, the officer will run the vehicle tags to see if it’s stolen or has the wrong stickers on the plate. And the dispatcher should already have most of this information. This whole issue is in my mind a mute point.
— Mark Mitchell, Citrus Heights

Editor’s Note: Residents can listen to public comments from the Sept. 25 City Council meeting here. The Sentinel’s article on illegal camping and sleeping in cars can be viewed here: Citrus Heights Council votes to toughen illegal camping regulations. Submit a letter to the editor or opinion column for publication: Click here.