Good Neighbor History and Background

Valley Water recognizes the connection between unsheltered homelessness and the lack of available permanent and transitional housing options in Santa Clara County. Encampments of unsheltered people form out of necessity when people have nowhere else to live or store their belongings. Valley Water estimates that approximately 700 unsheltered individuals have taken refuge on our lands near waterways.

As a water district, Valley Water’s primary responsibility is to carry out our mission in flood risk reduction, water supply, and environmental stewardship. While Valley Water does not provide health and social services, our agency is dedicated to addressing the unsheltered homelessness crisis by partnering with nonprofit organizations and local governmental agencies, as our funding and other resources allow, in accordance with the powers granted by the Santa Clara Valley Water District Act. 

Board Leadership and Policy

Valley Water’s Board of Directors is dedicated to the agency’s mission of providing safe, clean water and protecting against activities that negatively impact water quality and ecological resources. In 2017, the Board created the Environmental Creek Cleanup Committee (ECCC), formerly known as the Homeless Encampment Committee, to address homelessness and encampment-related issues. This committee facilitates discussions and makes recommendations for the Board’s consideration. 

The Good Neighbor Program was originally established as part of the Clean, Safe Creeks and Natural Flood Protection Plan in 2000. It was later incorporated into the Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection Program in 2012. The renewed 2020 Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection Program carried forward the Good Neighbor Program under Priority F: Support Public Health and Public Safety for Our Community. This initiative is identified as Project F5: Good Neighbor Program: Encampment Cleanup. Initially, efforts focused on cleaning up encampments in coordination with local cities and agencies. Over time, the program expanded to include services supporting staff safety. 

In 2023, the Board expanded the Good Neighbor Program to address the increasingly negative effects of encampments on Valley Water lands and strengthen support for collaborative, interagency efforts aimed at finding holistic solutions to homelessness. On Sept. 26, 2023, Valley Water’s Board of Directors formalized its commitment to addressing unsheltered homelessness by adopting a new Board Governance Policy. Board Ends Policy No. E-6 – Encampments of Unsheltered People states: Valley Water is committed, through a regional approach, to address the human health, safety, operational and environmental challenges posed by encampments of unsheltered people on Valley Water lands along waterways and at water supply and flood risk reduction facilities. 

The ends policy includes two objectives to support solutions for unsheltered homelessness.

• 6.1.1. Actively participate in a collaborative regional approach with the County, cities, and other service providers to support their efforts in addressing the challenges posed by encampments of unsheltered people.
• 6.1.3. Identify Valley Water lands for regional partners to use for housing or other services for unsheltered people.

Outreach and Support Services

In line with Board Ends Policy No. E-6, Valley Water collaborates with local agencies, social service providers, and law enforcement officers to address the challenges posed by encampments located on Valley Water property, including supporting outreach and other services provided by these partners. Valley Water has an agreement with the County of Santa Clara to help fund County outreach teams that regularly visit encampments on Valley Water property and offer shelter and housing resources.

Valley Water and the City of San José are finalizing a Letter of Intent to partner in holistically managing encampments on waterways throughout the City, including Valley Water priority locations and areas within the City’s stormwater Municipal Regional Permit discharge sites. Valley Water and the City of San José are also working to extend their agreement to provide comprehensive services to unsheltered individuals living in the high-risk flood zones of the Coyote Creek Flood Protection Project footprint. Additionally, Valley Water remains open to partnering with other local agencies, through Memoranda of Agreement or other means to manage the impacts of encampments on waterways and to assist in efforts to find solutions to address unsheltered homelessness.

Assembly Bill 1469: Valley Water’s Contribution to Shelter and Housing

As set forth in Board Ends Policy No. EL-6, Valley Water is committed to addressing the regional shelter and housing crisis by collaborating with local agencies to provide land for temporary and permanent housing options. The Valley Water-sponsored Assembly Bill (AB) 1469, which was signed into law on Oct. 10, 2023, amended the Santa Clara Valley Water District Act. This amendment gives Valley Water the authority to assist unsheltered people living along streams, in riparian corridors, or otherwise in its jurisdiction, in consultation with a city or the County of Santa Clara, to provide solutions or improve outcomes for the unsheltered individuals. Specifically, the law allows Valley Water the flexibility to use district land and a part of an existing ad valorem property tax for lasting encampment solutions.

The District Act now enables Valley Water to work with local agencies and private partners to construct low-barrier navigation centers, supportive housing, transitional housing, affordable housing, or other facilities to assist unsheltered people. These facilities would be operated by a city, the County, or a non-profit with the appropriate expertise to provide shelter and services that can improve outcomes for unsheltered people. 

Under the authority granted by AB 1469, Valley Water staff is discussing with nonprofit organizations and local government agencies the use of specific Valley Water-owned properties for potential temporary and permanent supportive housing. Valley Water and the City of San José recently finalized an agreement to allow the City’s use of Valley Water’s two-acre property on Cherry Avenue to develop an emergency interim housing site. The City of San José is also evaluating four additional Valley Water properties for use as safe sleeping sites. Valley Water continues to meet with other potential partners and seek opportunities to contribute to shelter and housing options.