Rodeway Inn

People’s Park has been a point of controversy within the Berkeley community as campus seeks to build housing on the park, while activists work to preserve it. But currently, the park is “chaos,” according to Nicholas Alexander, a resource coordinator who helps run the kitchen in the park.

Although the city of Berkeley has benefited from state-supported programs and local policies that aim to tackle houselessness, community members have been pushing for alternative and more substantial approaches.

Campus spokesperson Dan Mogulof discussed the recent People’s Park developments with People's Park Historic District Advocacy Group President Harvey Smith and Berkeleyside housing and homelessness reporter Supriya Yelimeli in a KQED forum Wednesday morning.

Ultimately, no matter the city’s work to provide supportive housing for residents of People’s Park, the park’s decades worth of history and culture will not be preserved.

While growing up in foster care and group homes, Oakland resident Vincent Ray Williams III, born HIV-positive and pansexual, alleged he was stigmatized, outcasted and physically abused when people "caught wind" of his sexual identity.

The school must take accountability and work to guarantee the residents it is removing from the park are protected and have longer-term housing solutions.

Campus and city officials have begun moving People’s Park residents into transitional housing, leaving the Southside neighborhood with the sight of an emptier park than usual.

The council authorized the sale of $40 million in general obligation bonds to support affordable housing and separately referred millions of dollars to address houselessness.

This plan, though grand in its promise, may not sufficiently address the long-term needs of Berkeley’s houseless community.

Campus administration announced a collaborative effort with the city of Berkeley and local nonprofits to temporarily house People’s Park residents.