Rebuttal to Maura Miklulec on SC homeless

It is no myth that San Clemente received a disproportionate amount of people from the Santa Ana Riverbed for the size of our town. Add to that we have no hospital. This and the spill out from sober living homes have brought too many homeless to our community. (Incidentally people brought in from other states that immediately declare residency to get California insurance benefits for SLH’s shouldn’t be counted as SC residents.) Add to this others that are arriving daily with their roller bags. (Just sit across the street from the bus stop by the car wash and observe.)

There are some local homeless, but it is a small percentage. (Your figures are skewed.) I worked on Avenida Del Mar for years up until 2014; we all knew the handful of homeless we had then. The new ones are a whole different crop. Most are either alcoholics, druggies and/or mentally ill. Most refuse help, as you know, and want to live without rules—which of course shelters have. They are a danger to society and a danger to themselves. They need help, not enabling handouts provided by “well-meaning” churches, charities and FAM.

As we all know our current California laws are weak and in favor of lawlessness, but this is no excuse to put our community’s health at risk by allowing the homeless to defecate, litter their needles, bottles and other trash on our City property and beaches. And or course we can’t forget the illegal campers in our canyons polluting—and a huge fire risk!

I thank God for our hard working safety advocate group that voice and document what is actually going on in our town. Pictures speak a thousand words—and we have plenty And that is no myth!

Aimee Berberet

SC resident since 2001