Good Neighbor Program - Valley Water Addressing Encampments of Unsheltered People
The Good Neighbor Program encompasses Valley Water’s efforts to address unsheltered homelessness and the impacts of encampments along creeks, waterways, and water supply facilities on land that Valley Water owns or manages. Valley Water estimates between 200 and 300 unsheltered people live on our property and easements, spanning approximately 333 of the more than 800 miles of creeks and waterways in Santa Clara County.
Encampments along waterways commonly generate large amounts of trash, debris, and hazardous pollutants that degrade water quality, obstruct fish passage, and damage and destroy fish and other wildlife habitats. Environmental impacts to riparian zones include wildfires, streambank erosion, harm to vegetation, and accumulation of human and hazardous waste. Encampments also raise health and safety issues for unsheltered individuals, Valley Water staff, and the broader community.
The Good Neighbor Program supports Valley Water’s independent and collaborative efforts to address the effects of encampments on Valley Water lands. In coordination with local cities, agencies, and nonprofit groups, Valley Water conducts encampment cleanups on property where our agency possesses land rights or has management responsibility. Through ongoing collaboration, local agencies provide law enforcement support to address safety issues arising from encampments, and social services agencies and nonprofit groups provide outreach and support to unsheltered individuals, including services and shelter alternatives.
To learn more about the Good Neighbor Program, read Valley Water’s Good Neighbor Program Fact Sheet.
How does Valley Water respond to encampments on Valley Water lands?
Valley Water performs encampment management activities only on properties where it possesses land rights or has built flood protection projects. Management of encampments on land owned by other entities is the responsibility of those entities.
This ownership map shows Valley Water-owned lands in green.
In general, Valley Water will prioritize encampment cleanup and removal as necessary to protect employees and/or public safety and to carry out Valley Water’s business.
Read Valley Water’s Encampment Response Protocol FAQ to learn more about how Valley Water responds to encampments and encampment-related issues, including how our agency prioritizes encampment cleanup and/or removal.
How do I report a potential encampment?
You can report encampment-related concerns to Valley Water via our online system at: access.valleywater.org/s/. If you have an immediate safety concern, call 911.
What is Valley Water’s Water Resources Protection Zones Ordinance?
Valley Water’s Water Resources Protection Zones (WRPZ) Ordinance was adopted on Nov. 26, 2024, to address the environmental, health, and safety impacts of encampments. The ordinance establishes regulations prohibiting camping and encampment-related activities on Valley Water lands. It outlines Valley Water’s approach to encampment cleanup, removal, and/or enforcement related to violations of the regulations.
Learn more about Valley Water’s Water Resources Protection Zones (WRPZ) Ordinance:
How is Valley Water contributing to solutions to unsheltered homelessness in Santa Clara County?
UPDATE: Valley Water and the City of San José have finalized a collaborative use agreement that will enable the City to develop an emergency interim housing community on Valley Water property located off Cherry Avenue in San José, near the Almaden Ranch shopping center. This interim housing community will provide units to serve as many as 125 unsheltered individuals. Those living in encampments on Valley Water property within Guadalupe River Reach 12 and on other Valley Water lands will receive first priority for housing opportunities at the new development. The interim housing community is expected to begin operations as early as fall 2025.
Valley Water is committed to helping solve the regional shelter and housing crisis by collaborating with local agencies to provide land for temporary and permanent housing options. Assembly Bill 1469 amended the Santa Clara Valley Water District Act to give 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 unsheltered individuals.
Valley Water collaborates with local agencies and other service providers to address the challenges posed by encampments and their impacts on waterways and water supply and flood protection facilities, including supporting the provision of outreach and other services by these agencies and service providers.
Valley Water Board of Directors approves ordinance to reduce encampments along creeks, waterways and water supply facilities
SAN JOSE — On Nov. 26, 2024, Valley Water’s Board of Directors adopted an ordinance to address the environmental, health, and safety impacts of encampments along waterways, water supply facilities, and other lands where Valley Water holds land rights.
The Water Resources Protection Zones Ordinance establishes new regulations prohibiting camping and encampment-related activities on Valley Water lands. The ordinance will enable Valley Water to manage encampment impacts better while working with local agencies and private partners to implement long-term solutions to address unsheltered homelessness within Santa Clara County.
“The intention of this ordinance is not to result in the criminalization of unsheltered people living along our waterways,” Valley Water Board Chair Nai Hsueh said. “Our agency’s mission is to provide Silicon Valley safe, clean water for a healthy life, environment, and economy. By advancing this ordinance, we aim to enhance our capacity to achieve these goals while fostering collaboration with government entities and private partners to create sustainable housing alternatives for unsheltered individuals. Together, we can make significant strides in addressing homelessness and environmental concerns in our community.”
The primary goals of the ordinance are to:
- Protect water resources, endangered species, riparian habitat of creeks and waterways, and other ecological resources
- Protect Valley Water investments in flood protection and environmental mitigation projects
- Support and improve the safety of Valley Water’s field operations staff
The ordinance prohibits camping within Water Resources Protection Zones, encompassing all lands where Valley Water owns property in fee title, has an easement, or has maintenance obligations. Valley Water owns and manages 333 miles of the more than 800 miles of creeks and rivers in Santa Clara County. The remaining stretches of creeks are owned by Santa Clara County, private entities, cities in which the creeks are located, and other public agencies.
The ordinance includes a provision for an implementation plan that provides a framework and timeline for implementing the ordinance. The Ordinance Implementation Plan focuses on reducing and eliminating the most serious environmental, health, and safety impacts encampments have on the environment, unsheltered individuals, Valley Water employees and the broader community.
Valley Water will conduct widespread education and outreach to the community, including unsheltered individuals residing in encampments, advocates and social services providers who support unsheltered people, and local and law enforcement agencies. The ordinance went into effect on Dec. 26, 2024; enforcement began on Jan. 2, 2025.
For more information on the program please contact:
Mark Bilski: 408-630-2830
