Deschutes County to consider removing people from Juniper Ridge, citing health, safety hazards

The county is concerned about the potential transmission of bacteria or parasites.

Human waste near campsites and the canal could pose extreme risks to water users downstream, and strewn tires collecting puddles of water could potentially give way to mosquito-borne illnesses, the documents said.

“Poor sanitary conditions in the primitive camping areas include solid waste, garbage and tires,” the documents said. “Rats, mice, ground squirrels and birds are present and provide another opportunity for disease to spread.”

Juniper Ridge, which is colloquially referred to as dirt world, spans about 1,500 acres on the northeastern edge of Bend where homeless people have been living for more than a decade. The property where the code violation occurred is about 50 acres of mostly county land. Adjacent city of Bend property, which is outside of city limits, could be included in the county’s efforts to evict homeless people from Juniper Ridge, according to county emails obtained by The Bulletin.

As a whole, it’s home to 100-200 people, according to county estimates.

There is no firm date yet for the county to remove them, but it would be one of the largest sweeps in the region in the last three years.

County commissioners, administrators and the county’s legal counsel were all made aware of the code violations on March 31, according to the documents.

The commission plans to address the issue on June 21. Deschutes County Commissioner Tony DeBone told The Bulletin it’s time for action.

“We’re looking just to make it better, make the situation better,” DeBone said.

The county has an administrative policy in place, which commissioners approved earlier this year, to address immediate threats to safety, like fire, risk of fire or illegal activity. But it is uncertain whether it was also meant to conduct efforts to displace multiple homeless people and camps at once.

“It’s not, because that offers to move personal belongings to help someone move along,” DeBone said. “But this is basically human waste, solid waste, unsanctioned camping on larger parcels with long-term parcels and health and safety.”

Homeless people living near Juniper Ridge likely won’t have a place to go in the event of removal, which makes it difficult for service outreach providers to continue to offer help and build relationships.

For many on Juniper Ridge, like Heather Farrah, it’s home.

Farrah, 46, has lived in Bend for more than 20 years but has lived nestled in the junipers for the past five months.

“They can try and make people move, but they’ll always come back,” she said.

She initially moved there to take care of her friend, a 66-year-old man in poor health. Homeless people often get stereotyped, Farrah said, but they’re not all the same.

“I know a lot of people see the mess, but it’s not always the homeless,” she said.

For Sharon Buell, who is a case manager for local nonprofit Shepherd’s House Ministries, relationship-building is a big part of her weekly visits to Juniper Ridge. She hands out supplies and attempts to offer people housing and shelter opportunities

“I look at it as the poorest of the poor out here,” she said.

But many people work minimum wage jobs and simply can’t afford the rents and cost of living in Bend, Buell said.

Deschutes County Commissioner Phil Chang said he and his fellow commissioners plan to discuss a timeline for removal and any accompanying mitigation efforts. While he disagrees with shuffling homeless people from one unauthorized location to another, he feels compelled by the county code to abide by the rules, he said.

“As a commissioner, I feel like I have a split personality on this,” he said.

Because the county hasn’t created meaningful ways out of homelessness in the past, commissioners can’t wait any longer, Chang said.

“It is just shifting a problem, and it’s not solving a problem,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office is proposing more stringent rules for homeless people camping on county property. If approved, the rules would require people to move every 24 hours.

The sheriff’s office also proposes limits on camping on federal land, creating fires, digging in the ground, building structures, keeping animals crated or on a leash and leaving behind gray water or trash. Commissioners are scheduled to consider the proposed rules at their meeting on Wednesday.