Berkeley cleared much of the Harrison and Eighth streets encampment in the Gilman District this week after nearly two years of court battles, with police and city workers arriving Tuesday following a Friday notice. An attorney for residents said seven people are legally exempted from removal until they receive disability accommodations, and within days at least one resident had returned while others moved to neighboring streets. City Manager Paul Buddenhagen told council members the city has already received "numerous" complaints about people relocating to nearby streets.
U.S. District Judge Edward Chen allowed the sweep to proceed but has ordered Berkeley to evaluate areas where homeless residents say they would prefer to build encampments.
The San Francisco Standard · on the postponed Harrison Street encampment sweep
Berkeley announced last week it would clear the Harrison Street encampment September 8 but has postponed the sweep until after a September 8 status hearing before U.S. District Judge Edward Chen, who has ruled the city may dismantle the camp only after relocating 23 disabled residents and storing their possessions. Berkeley Homeless Union president Yesica Prado toured five candidate tent sites with city representatives; per Prado, the city dismissed four and said the fifth, on Camelia Street, could accommodate only two people.
Notices to residents had set the Eighth and Harrison closure for September 8; both sides update Judge Chen on relocation progress at that day's hearing.
U.S. District Judge Edward Chen issued an August 20 ruling making permanent a set of protections for Berkeley Homeless Union members, under which vehicles used as shelter cannot be impounded unless they pose a concrete safety threat and members must be allowed to relocate during a camp closure or be given a replacement tent if their dwelling is destroyed. BHU attorney Anthony Prince said hundreds of members live in at least 12 encampments across the city. Residents of the Eighth and Harrison encampment have received notice that the camp will be closed on September 8.
Under Chen's earlier order, homeless advocates were required to propose, and city officials to approve or reject, a list of new campsites for 23 camp residents by August 27.
San Francisco Chronicle · on Berkeley's Eighth-and-Harrison encampment
The Chronicle reported that the Harrison Street encampment in West Berkeley became the subject of a widely shared online debate this week after a local television reporter posted a video of the camp near UC Berkeley student housing, and recounted the litigation that has kept the camp in place. The paper cited a 2026 point-in-time count finding roughly 880 homeless people in Berkeley, about 11% of Alameda County's total.
Under U.S. District Judge Edward Chen's August 13 order, advocates must propose relocation sites for 23 camp residents by August 27, which the city then approves or rejects.
U.S. District Judge Edward Chen rejected homeless advocates' request for a long-term postponement of Berkeley's closure of the Eighth and Harrison streets encampment, writing that he "expects the Harrison encampment will, in short order, be abated." His order requires advocates to generate, and the city to approve or reject, a list of proposed new campsites for 23 residents by August 27, and requires the city to continue the disability-accommodation assessments and property storage he ordered in April. City attorneys said the camp now has about 80 residents; advocates estimated around 35 in June 2025 and 40 in February.
Berkeley posted notices July 27 ordering the area cleared by August 3, before Chen ordered the city to hold off pending the hearing.