On Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 4:30 p.m., Fairfax residents congregated by the Parcade Steps to protest the homeless encampment in Contratti Park Baseball Field and attempt to oust Fairfax’s Town Council. The hour-long event attracted around 50 frustrated Fairfax residents, including several town council candidates. The majority of attendees held signs conveying their message that the homeless encampment must go, and with it, Fairfax’s current council members. 

Since 2021, some of Fairfax’s homeless population has settled in a small encampment on Contratti Park Baseball Field. Over the last few years, Fairfax residents have expressed their concern about the homeless encampment to the town council. 

Despite growing complaints, several unhoused individuals remain in the park, raising concerns about children’s safety. In a recent incident at a West Marin Little League game, an unhoused individual began yelling, climbing the fence, and throwing trash at the players. 

Fairfax resident Sean Fitzgerald organized the protest after noticing the encampment when walking downtown with his son. His concerns were further intensified after hearing about the incident at the Little League game.

“We really didn’t know what our boundary was until it was crossed, and that boundary was violently assaulting our children at play,” Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald believes that neither party is benefiting from the current situation, and the town must use thoughtful, empathetic strategies to relocate the people living in the Contratti Park encampment in order to make progress.

“Compassion needs extend to the entire community. That includes our kids, includes our families,” Fitzgerald said. “You have to weigh everyone’s needs in a community, not just those that are unhoused, and you’ve got to go solve the greater good.”

After roughly an hour of lobbying, pizza arrived for attendees and the organizers made an announcement: the group was to take to the streets, following behind an orange tractor and marching a block to the Fairfax Police Department. 

As the protesters marched they chanted, “Hey hey, ho ho, Town Council has to go.” After around fifteen minutes outside the police department, the crowd made its way back to the steps, where they stayed for the next half an hour, cheering to encouraging honks from cars.

The Fairfax Town Council’s lack of response regarding this issue has prompted frustration within the town. Protestors, including longtime Fairfax resident Bonnie Leonard, reported submitting petitions and speaking at open meetings with no success.

“[The town council is] in it for the wrong reason. They’re not really representing the public interest…they’ve made it impossible for a lot of people to speak at the council, whether online or in person,” Leonard said. 

Contrary to public opinion, the current council has addressed the Contratti Park issue in the past and continues to work towards a solution. Councilmember Chance Cutrano outlined the council’s previous approach to combating homelessness in Fairfax, which successfully housed multiple individuals during the pandemic.

“Over several years, the Town Council has worked to actively address homelessness through public meetings, partnerships with county government and service providers, and direct support via increased regional caseworker funding for unhoused residents,” Cutrano said.

The council is willing to take the next step, especially now that the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling in the Grants Pass v. Johnson case allows local governments to enforce no-camping ordinances even if they can’t provide unhoused individuals with adequate shelter. Councilmember Stephanie Hellman hopes to move forward with plans to clear the encampment.

“I am optimistic we will move forward with enforcing the current Fairfax ordinance restricting use of the area after dark and explore a no-camping policy at that particular site as well,” Hellman said.

The protest offered the four attending town council candidates a chance to appeal to voters by taking stances on the heated topic. Mike Ghiringhelli, 2024 Fairfax Town Council candidate and owner of Ghiringhelli’s Pizzeria, outlined the first step he’d take to resolve the issue.

“The first thing is, in anything you do, to have the will to do it. You have to say, ‘what’s my objective?’ [Currently,] the objective is to, in a very compassionate way, find the folks that are homeless a place to stay,” Ghiringhelli said.

Alternatively, 2024 Town Council Candidate Doug Kelly proposes “silos” as a solution to the Fairfax homelessness dilemma. The term “silo” refers to a specific business division that works separately from other departments and specializes in a set field. Kelly hopes that by sending specialized teams to work with the homeless individuals, the town could pinpoint each unhoused person’s needs and offer them assistance or shelter that’s tailored to their circumstances.

“We need services for these people… we need silos. A battered woman who’s living on the street needs a different care than an army [veteran] with PTSD,” Kelly said.

In an upcoming meeting Nov. 6, the Town Council plans to discuss the homelessness issue, including developing an anti-camping ordinance and implementing a coordinated transition plan. However, the protest poses questions about Fairfax’s future leadership and has forced the community to rethink how it deals with complications like homelessness, a lack of representation, and what it stands for as a town. Until the election Nov. 5, it is unclear where this lobbying will land. 

This story was originally published on The Pitch on October 28, 2024.