RE: Maureen Huntington Superintendent of Schools
Inbox
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homeless shelter
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June 10, 2015
Dear Mrs. Hallet,
Thank
you for your letter of concern. Upon receipt of your letter, I
contacted Msgr. Michael Padazinski, Pastor, St. Anselm Church and
School. He assured me that this project
has been carefully vetted for safety for our students and adults. He
stated that there would not be any smoking on the school grounds or in
the buildings. The information in the media was not accurate.
I am grateful for your concern and diligence. My best to you this summer!
Maureen Huntington
Ms Maureen Huntington
Superintendent of Catholic Schools
Department of Catholic Schools | www.sfdcs.org The Archdiocese of San Francisco | www.sfarchdiocese.org Direct 415-614-5666 | Main 415-614-5500 | huntingtonm@sfarchdiocese.org
The contents of this message are privileged and confidential.
This message should not be forwarded or distributed without the permission of the author.
From: Marsha Hallet [mailto:marshahallet@gmail.com
Sent: Tuesday, June 09, 2015 9:06 PM To: Maureen Huntington Subject: Maureen Huntington Superintendent of Schools
Dear Superintendent Huntington:
I am writing you because good intentions may have gone astray in the choice of the location of a homeless shelter at St. Anselm
Elementary School this summer.
The
REST group (rotating emergency shelter team) sponsored by St. Vincent
de Paul has decided to allow smoking
on St. Anselm school grounds despite California law which forbids it
both inside a school and in outdoor play areas. The Town of San Anselmo
has an even more restrictive smoking ordinance than the state, and thus
the dangers of second hand smoke to children
and adults is broadly recognized.
Apparently,
third-hand smoke, the residue left by smokers on physical objects both
indoors and outdoors, is
no less dangerous. The Mayo Clinic states that tobacco residue combined
with pollutants creates a toxic mix containing “cancer-causing
substances, and posing a potential hazard to nonsmokers who are exposed
to it, especially children.” The Mayo Clinic article
states that third hand smoke resists cleaning, and thus the only way to
provide a safe environment for children is to make both indoor and
outdoor environments smoke free at all times.
According
to a Marin IJ article, the REST group plans to give the homeless men
personal air filters and ask them to voluntarily
use them. These cannot circumvent the law and are not proven to work.
“We also invested in personal smoke filters that we’re going to ask all
of the smokers to use so there won’t be any exhalation of cigarette
smoke.” Research suggests that seventy-five percent
of homeless smoke. Thirty smokers a night would participate in
contaminating the school environment for the projected eight week
duration of the shelter.
I
believe the location of the shelter is also in violation of town zoning
regulations, but the Town Attorney does not agree with
me. What is not subject to interpretation are smoking laws. The
Church should not be party to this illegal activity just so REST can
accomplish their goal of housing 40 homeless men this summer.
Everyone
at the St. Anselm Parish, who has an e-mail address, received a letter
outlining these issues
(see below), and not one person has responded to me. I have also handed
out many fliers and posted a Letter to St. Anselm Parents on next-door
Ross which reaches over 4000 people. Parents overwhelming do not
support the shelter but feel they have been handed
a fait accompli.
I am asking you to condemn smoking at your school.
Thank you for your response.
Best regards,
Marsha Hallet
SUMMARY OF ISSUES
The Location Is Not Legal
Town
Ordinance 1098 that became Municipal Code section 10-12 after it was
passed in January 2015 states very clearly that
an “emergency shelter” is forbidden in an R1 residential neighborhood.
St. Anselm Elementary School is in an R1 residential zone.
The
next
issue is whether the REST program is an emergency shelter as that term
is defined in the Ordinance and Municipal Code. An "emergency shelter"
is defined in the San Anselmo
Ordinance as any shelter falling within California Health & Safety
Code section 50801(e)'s definition of an emergency shelter. 50801(e)
states that an "emergency shelter" is a shelter that houses homeless for
less than 6 months. The shelter planned by REST
will house the homeless for less than six months, the plan is every
night from 6pm to 6am for two months. Here's the language of 50801(e):
"Emergency
shelter" means housing with minimal supportive services for homeless
persons that is limited to occupancy of six months or less by a homeless
person. No individual or
household maybe denied emergency shelter because of an inability to
pay.
I have linked San Anselmo Ordinance 1098, Municipal Code Title 10, Chapter 12, Land Use Table 3A, and California Health
and Safety Code section 50801(e) at the end of this letter.
Smoking Is Not Legal and Leaves Toxic Residue That Cannot Be Cleaned
We were given a copy of REST's smoking policy and learned that REST will allow the homeless to smoke at St. Anselm Elementary
School. Change Labs Solutions: California Laws Affecting Smoking 2014 states that State and Federal laws forbid smoking in any private or public school and near any playground.
Change Labs describes civil and criminal penalties. The link to Change Labs is at the end of this letter.
In
addition, the San Anselmo Municipal Code section 4-15.02 (b)(5)(ii)
addresses smoking near children even more restrictively
than state law because it says that smoking must be a reasonable
distance from unenclosed areas primarily used by children, such as
playgrounds. It seems that state law might allow smoking on the sidewalk
next to the playground, but the Municipal Code would
not. Municipal Code 4-15.02 (b)(5) (ii) says:
The
area must not include, and must be a reasonable distance from,
unenclosed areas primarily used by children and unenclosed areas with
improvements that facilitate physical activity
including, for example, playgrounds, tennis courts, swimming pools, and
school campuses.
In regards to second hand smoke in general, the town allows a civil action. Municipal Code section 4-15.09 (b) states:
For
all purposes within the jurisdiction of the Town, non-consensual
exposure to smoke occurring on or drifting into residential property is a
nuisance, and the uninvited presence
of smoke on residential property is a nuisance and a trespass. Any
person bringing a civil action to enforce the nuisance provision
contained in this section need not prove an injury different in kind or
in degree from injury to others to prove a violation
of this chapter.
I have linked to the San Anselmo Municipal Code at the end of the letter.
The Mayo Clinic website describes that third-hand smoke is extremely toxic, especially to children, because it attaches
to physical surroundings near the smoker and resists cleaning or removal. In this regard, the Mayo Clinic site states that:
This
toxic mix of third hand smoke contains cancer-causing substances,
posing a potential health hazard to nonsmokers who are exposed to it,
especially children.
Studies
show that third hand smoke clings to hair, skin, clothes, furniture,
drapes, walls, bedding, carpets, dust, vehicles and other surfaces, even
long after smoking has stopped.
Infants, children and nonsmoking adults may be at risk of
tobacco-related health problems when they inhale, ingest or touch
substances containing third hand smoke. Third hand smoke is a relatively
new concept, and researchers are still studying its possible
dangers.
Third
hand smoke residue builds up on surfaces over time and resists normal
cleaning. Third hand smoke can't be eliminated by airing out rooms,
opening windows, using fans or air
conditioners, or confining smoking to only certain areas of a home. In
contrast, secondhand smoke is the smoke and other airborne products that
come from being close to burning tobacco products, such as cigarettes.
The
only way to protect nonsmokers from third hand smoke is to create a
smoke-free environment, whether that's your private home or vehicle, or
in public places, such as hotels
and restaurants.
The Mayo Clinic link is at the end of the letter.
Too Many Men and No Security
The
town Ordinance restricts emergency homeless shelters in San Anselmo to
limited commercial, general commercial and
public facilities areas and to 17 homeless individuals, not to the 40
men planned by REST. The Ordinance requires on-site security and
on-site management, and REST does not plan to have any security.
Opinion of Town Attorney
The
Town Attorney wrote a letter stating that "the Town does not have
authority to restrict this program,
because it is a temporary shelter that is a permitted accessory use
under the Town's Municipal Code." His logic is summarized below, and we
disagree with it:
The
Town Attorney wrote that "[b]ecause it will be a temporary use, the
regulations for a permanent Emergency
Shelter are not triggered." He described the shelter as a "pilot
program for several weeks during the summer." We disagree with his
analysis because the Municipal Code defines "Emergency Shelter" in
10-12.02 to mean housing as defined in California Health
and Safety Code 50801(e), any shelter housing homeless for less than
six months.
Although
the Town Attorney acknowledged that "Ms. Hallet's letter ...points to
the definition of Emergency
Shelter that the Town has adopted in Chapter 10-12 of the Municipal
Code, which references the definition in state law under Health &
Safety Code section 50801(e)," the Town Attorney's letter did not
actually quote or analyze the definition at all. The Town
Attorney simply described the general purposes of the California
Department of Housing homeless legislation. He wrote that the goal of
the Housing Code is to encourage individuals to accept service and move
toward permanent housing and that the intent of the
legislature is to increase the availability of year- round housing.
The
Town Attorney did not address the definition of "emergency shelter" and
why he believed that REST's
planned eight week shelter for the homeless does not fall within the
definition of "emergency shelter" which is defined as any shelter
housing the homeless for less than six months.
San
Anselmo's use of the state's definition of "emergency shelter" in its
own ordinance and the other
items in the legislation, including forbidding emergency shelters in R1
neighborhoods was anticipated by the state. There is a State of
California Memorandum that addresses what the Town can do to comply with
the homeless housing regulations set by the state.
It specifically gives municipalities the right to have the rules that
that San Anselmo Town Council passed in Ordinance 1098 (Municipal Code
10-12.) this January 2015. The State of California Memorandum is linked
below.
The Town Attorney also wrote that:
The
summer REST program is an accessory use under the Town's Land Use
Regulation Table. (San Anselmo Municipal Code, Table 3A). Such uses are
permitted as of right
in residential zones. Because St. Anselm School is in a residential
zone (R1) in which this accessory use is permitted, there is no
requirement that REST apply for a use permit or any other Town permit to
operate its temporary shelter. The Town has no means
by which to impose conditions on this temporary accessory use.
Contrary
to what the Town Attorney wrote above, when the Town passed Ordinance
1098 in January 2015,
the Ordinance modified the section of Land Use Table 3(A) that has to
do with "emergency shelter." It is consistent with the Ordinance and
Municipal Code and does not allow emergency shelters in residential
areas. I have linked to the Town's Land Use Table
3(A) below.
The Town Attorney wrote that "[b]ecause it will be a temporary use, the regulations for a permanent Emergency
Shelter are not triggered."
As
you can see from what I have written above, there is nothing in the
state law's definition of emergency
shelter or in the Town Ordinance about the intent of the shelter
organizers regarding duration. The definition applies to shelters where
homeless are able to stay for less than six months, and based on that
definition, the REST shelter falls within the definition
of emergency shelter both under the state law and San Anselmo Municipal
Code and Land Use Table 3A. I did a word search of the state housing
code to try to find any mention of pilot or temporary programs and
whether they would be treated differently, and I
could not find anything remotely relevant. I did not find the word
temporary used. The only time I found the state using the word
"permanent" was as an adjective to describe housing.
The Town Attorney did not address smoking or the other issues we raised, such as a maximum of 17 homeless
and on-site security.
Our
group that believes that the needs of the homeless should be met, but
not at the expense of the health
of children, in violation of local or state law, and in violation of
REST’s own policy that states that they would not put a homeless shelter
in a residential neighborhood.
Links
1.
Ordinance 1098 – adopts Title 10, Chapter 12 (Emergency Shelters)
and can be found by going to the Town of San Anselmo website, linking
to “government,” linking to “Town Municipal Code,” and entering
Ordinance 1098 in the search bar.
2. San Anselmo Municipal Code, Chapter 12
- The Municipal Code can be found by going to the Town
of San Anselmo website, linking to “government,” then linking to “Town
Municipal Code,” then entering Chapter 12 Emergency Shelters in the
search bar.
3.
San Anselmo Land Use Table 3A - The link to the Land Use Table 3A
can be found by linking to “government”, then linking to “Town
Municipal Code” then entering Table 3A in the search bar.
4.
Link to Smoking Laws in California and Mayo Clinic Article on Third Hand Smoke -
http://changelabsolutions.org/
5.
REST Smoking Policy: I received an email from REST describing
the smoking policy. Men arrive at 6 p.m. The policy states that there
will be no smoking from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. This indicates that "smoking
breaks" will be between 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. The
policy is quoted below:
There
will be no smoking on the St. Anselm facility. There will be
supervised smoking breaks. We are also investigating the purchase
of personal air-filters and hosting a class for those who want to stop
smoking. There will be no smoking from 10pm until the men leave in the
morning, approximately 6am.
6.
REST policy statement about not having emergency shelters in residential areas -
http://wearesanrafael.com/
7.
Letter from the Town Attorney Rob Epstein attached.
8.
Senate Bill 2 Local Planning and Approval for Emergency Shelters and Transitional and Supportive Housing with Memo: http://www.hcd.ca.gov/
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