Unacceptable..

This blighted hoarding is accompanied by raw sewage disposal by the 'tenant'.

This is not for lack of effort by neighbors who have worked tirelessly and unsuccessfully for years about this very corner, which has had decades-long effects of abandonment by the wealthy commercial owners and city authorities, with a number of campers/RVs for years, trash, blight and graffiti.

We've contacted City departments, our Councilman Dan Kalb and the owners (Scott Atthowe of Atthowe Art Services http://www.atthowe.com/) and Marcel Schurman (http://srgretail.com/,https://www.papyrusonline.com/about-papyrus/our-story), offered owners suggestions and links to the proper city authorities, have met and called city and regional authorities and had letter-writing campaigns.

Its perhaps time to inundate social media with the truth about the city and building owners approach and refusal to maintain their properties and public pathways.

Thank you for your request. According to our system, we already have an open service request of this kind at this location. Your request has been combined with service request #656092. If you would like to check the status of the request, please contact the Public Works Call Center at 510-615-5566 or pwacallcenter@oaklandnet.com. This issue can also be followed by watching http://seeclickfix.com/issues/2524575.

Both of the following were reported on 1-11-16. Nearly 6 months of inaction on the city’s part has allowed it to grow into the pile you see today.

http://seeclickfix.com/issues/2149535-illegal-dumping
http://seeclickfix.com/issues/2149529-dumping-and-illegal-junk-storage

There is a person living in the tarp-covered structure in the middle of the pile of junk. A few days ago, there was a "for sale" sign on the junk, so if you see something you like, you can help reduce the pile.

Yes, I want this fixed immediately. It makes the neighborhood looks like a trash dump, and invites further dumping on that corner. It has been like this for months if not years with no action from the city.

Thank Oakland's Mayor. I'm assuming this is the way city leaders like it, since nothing had been done to come up with a solution. I think every news station should be contacted and documented how long it takes for the city to respond.

I have reported this myself on more than one occasion. I'm up for figuring a more effective way of escalating this!

Its interesting to note that a report gets 'merged' with another request made on the same day that has LESS information, NO PICTURE, and NO COMMENTS, and fewer views or votes. What's the process followed by OPW, to determine which report to use? Why don't the comments get pasted in when merging the same issue into one? Please see Service Request ID: 656092.

what makes you better than this person living on the streets? just because someone's life has to be exposed because they don't have as much money and resources as us who are able to live in homes and hide all our waste doesn't make you righteous and them a scapegoat. That is an industrial corner, obviously chosen to not be directly in front of peoples homes, so I would say that people who live in homes but are offended by seeing poor people should check their privilege and have some compassion. THESE ARE HUMAN BEINGS, THEY ARE YOUR NEIGHBORS! I personally have made friendly aquantences with some of the people who sometimes stay in that area, and most clean up after themselves. Yes that one pile does seem to be growing but that doesn't warrant getting all fascist about it, this is a mixed class mixed culture mixed use area and we should be able to work this out as neighbors, and also just live and let live. I think a real human to human neighborly interaction could help de-escalate this situation, put a human face on the human being, perhaps we can work together to get the mess reduced while also making people who do not have the resources to live in a four walled home feel respected as neighbors and people of the community too, for that is what they are, many have been in Oakland much longer than I or you, and most have nowhere else to go. With all the evictions and all the prices soaring we need to be thinking of ways to help those most vulnerable, not reporting them and other dehumanizing actions, what if you were the one living on the streets? (and you may end up there, even if you own your home, and I, as a low income renter know I may end up there.)

You have to report that a person is living there so public works can give them a notice that the garbage is going to be picked up. Is the neighborhood just suppose to look at the city dump. No one on here said much other than someone lives there. Being homeless doesn't mean you get to trash the city.

City of Oakland Public Works Department addressed this issue on 05/26/2016, service request #656092.

Will wait till someone confirms this

This has not been addressed. A large number of concerned neighbors are fed up with this being ignored. Post after post have gone up about this situation to no avail. There are several homeless people with serious mental health and addiction issues habitating in RV's and a shelter made from a collection of objects IN THE STREET. It is so big now that it takes up half the road and they have actually put up orange pylons around it so a car does not run through it. There is raw sewage dumping happening among other health concerns. This is a complex issue because we are dealing with people who obviously do not have anywhere else to go and are in serious need of services. No one has come out from the city to help them or tried to deal with the health hazards that have been going on for at least 6 months now. I'm tired of this neighborhood being ignored just because it appears to be a bunch of warehouses or a "mixed use" neighborhood. I live in one of those warehouses. Our warehouses is currently and has been occupied by low income artists since the 60's. Each of the warehouses along Lowell Street are occupied by good caring long term tenants. Please show us and these homeless people in need some respect by coming out and finding a solution that can benefit us all. I'm sure this is not the first time this situation has happened, they're must be something that can be done and has been done in the past.

The City of Oakland Public Works Department has received this issue. It is registered as service request #656688. Please check back for status updates, or contact us directly at 510-615-5566.

Has anyone tried contacting your district council member and asking what that are doing about this problem? I don't see how the city can just act like this does not exist.. Oakland has no solutions.

Absolutely we have. Dan Kalb refers us to the city depts. But the city depts aren't managing the work or being transparent. We need an upswell to get the city to enforce their own ordinances.

Also, complain to your building managers/rental company. Its been the experience of neighbors that the city only respond to pressure from owners.

Still there and growing by the day. I've also contacted Kalb. Gave me a BS response. Ive also called public works a few times. I've also contacted our community policing officer but he hasn't gotten back to me.

No city leader has a solution because they don't want to tangle with advocates. I thought they were suppose to help the homeless not let them break every law. On the news the city of Lodi was given by a grand jury by 2017 for the county to come up with solutions, with that cities Mayor, police chief and county services. They are too come up with short and long term goals with non profit and churches. Not sure how the grand jury got involved, but something needs to be done in Oakland. What is it that city leaders do besides sit in an office?

This is not true, I actually went over to that corner yesterday, and the person's possessions are not growing and in fact have become more orderly, they are only taking up the space of a car and part of the sidewalk, they have orange cones out so cars can clearly see. This person is trying, they have no where else to go, and I and others in the neighborhood who believe in helping those in need and not scapegoating them are willing to help with some clean up, bring over some plastic bags and water etc. There are thousands of people without homes in Oakland, THOUSANDS, and the numbers keep growing, and sorry but the city government is way more tied to reality interests than homeless rights advocates so please stop claiming victimhood by having to witness a poor person down on their luck when you have a house and a car and other resources. We can choose in this moment to either keep de-humanizing the people who live on the streets or actually try and BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR and see what we can do to help. This one person and their possessions are not the enemy, they are just trying to live their life, as I would suggest we should try and be better people ourselves and work on our own lives and stop demonizing this person.

Oakland has a sit, lie law, they are blocking a sidewalk, a parking space, illegal camping, more important, where is this person putting their waste. I'd like to know when the homeless are going to start taking part of the responsibility for their own actions. Those who truly want to get out, will, those who don't, will continue to be on the streets. if they want to camp, that's fine, but the city needs to clean up these encampments for health reasons, vermin reasons and trash reasons. Get real. If you want to help them, good for you, but they have to want to help themselves also, not rely on freebies forever.

I am glad to hear that some of my neighbors have had a more amicable interaction with the persons living in the RV's and in the pile. I have had several myself that have not been so pleasant. To be fair I'm not sure if it was the man living in the pile or one of the men from the RV's because every time I see them at the encampment they are outside hanging out on the sidewalk or going through their belongings... But I have witnessed one of them dumping out and rifling through other neighbors garbage bags full of kitchen waste and other things directly across from where I live. Instead of just calling the city I spoke with him personally and asked him to please pick it up after he was done. He mumbled a yes of course and waved me off. Neither time did he actually pick it up. On a separate occasion I also found the same man walking shoeless and shirtless down the middle of our road (I live directly across from the encampment just one block over) screaming at the top of his lungs for someone to kill him and watched in horror as he physically confronted passing traffic. I had to call the police in that instance because I was scared for his life. So as a concerned neighbor I would really like to see more attention being paid to what is going on over there. It's not just as simple as helping to organize the pile.

I don't have a problem with people living in vehicles. Most of the residents on that section of the road have been there a long time and keep the area about as clean as possible for people without trash pickup. This new development is another story. The pile of stuff has been growing and taking over the sidewalk and street. Yes, the homeless should be treated with dignity and respect, but no one is allowed to pile up large amounts of junk and store on public streets and the sidewalk forever. Is there anyone from the city who can come talk to the person whose pile it is and see if they need help? Hoarding is often a symptom of mental illness.

The trash heap is not acceptable as part of a neighborhood.

This has been worrying me for a while, its unacceptable to have this sort of thing happening in a residential neighborhood. Recently I have noticed groups of people later at night hanging out around that area. This is NOT the sort of thing we should want in a neighborhood where people are walking dogs, kids are playing. It needs to be fixed immediately. I think we should all start calling the phone number above daily until something it done.

it's not just a trash heap, it is someone's home and possessions, I have talked with them, he is a very nice older gentleman who had a union job but got injured and now is awaiting disability benefits. In the meantime they are forced to live on the streets, and are selling items to survive. He also knows that their possessions are getting out of control and are working on it with others in the community as well as the city. They are adamant about not wanting to be a dumper, in fact he is a recycler, re-using the trash that people with official homes throw away, but he is trying to give away lot's of items and waiting on a friend to help them bring stuff to dump. He is open to talking about concerns of people in neighborhood.

I believe that this issue can be closed. The pile is now very small and only takes up a portion of the sidewalk. While it would be nice if the whole sidewalk were accessible that is a luxury in most urban areas.

City of Oakland Public Works Department addressed this issue on 06/23/2016, service request #656688.