A container for sock donations is located inside the Grocery Outlet on Auburn Boulevard. // M. Hazlip
By Mike Hazlip—
Alfred Sanchez, better known on the streets of Citrus Heights as the Snack Man, is looking to collect 3,000 pairs of socks to distribute to people experiencing homelessness in Citrus Heights.
Sanchez told The Sentinel he organizes a different assistance effort during his birthday month each year. This year, Sanchez is hoping to be active in making contact with homeless individuals about 300 days out of the year and have enough pairs of socks to distribute 10 pairs each day.
A previous sock drive netted more than 800 pairs of socks, he says. Sanchez said socks are “critical” to homeless hygiene.
Donations can be made through the end of March at Grocery Outlet at 6059 Auburn Blvd., or at Sanchez’ home at 6253 Longford Drive.
Alfred Sanchez, front left, stands with other demonstrators outside City Hall on Sept. 14, 2021. // M. Hazlip
By Mike Hazlip–
While voters in Citrus Heights lined up at the polls on Tuesday, about a dozen people joined in a small demonstration outside City Hall to make their voices heard on the issue of camping on public property.
Alfred Sanchez, known to many as the Snack Man, organized the event and described it as a “peaceful assembly.” Sanchez said he wanted people in the community who are currently homeless to know their rights when it comes to sleeping on public property.
As a homeless advocate, Sanchez says the people he encounters have no alternative other than sleeping on the streets. He says the Martin v. Boise court ruling in 2018 provides people experiencing homelessness some protection from the city’s enforcement of civil codes designed to restrict camping on public property.
The ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has received both heavy criticism and praise. The decision hinged on the precept that criminalizing human behavior such as sleeping on public property when there is no shelter available is “cruel and unusual punishment,” in violation of the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
The Ninth Circuit encompasses nine western states, including Alaska and Hawaii so the Martin v. Boise decision has a far-reaching effect.
“(The) Martin vs. Boise ruling says if there’s no adequate shelter, they cannot cite you for camping,” Sanchez said. Additionally, he said allowing people to sleep in their vehicles would help the homeless community.
“Doable right now would be a safe place to park,” he said. “I don’t know why we can’t just park right here. According to the letter of the law of Martin v. Boise, there’s no reason we cannot just sleep in our cars right here. Some of the people said they were going to come here with tents, set them up here and not leave.”
Sanchez said Citrus Heights police sent an eviction notice to an individual who was sleeping on a sidewalk. He didn’t name the individual, but said he thinks police actions were in violation of the Boise ruling.
Citrus Heights Police Lt. Michael Wells told The Sentinel in an email Thursday that enforcement of camping ordinances does not violate the ruling.
“The Martin v. Boise decision ensures people experiencing homelessness will not be cited or arrested for sleeping outdoors when alternative shelter is not available, and the city will continue to take steps to put every person experiencing homelessness and desiring services on a path to permanent housing,” Wells said.
Responding to Sanchez’ claim of someone being kicked off a sidewalk, Wells said it likely involved someone blocking a sidewalk or public right of way.
“The officers have discretion in these situations, and I can tell you based on my experience that the issuance of a citation for blocking a right-of-way often comes after numerous failed attempts to gain voluntary compliance,” Wells said.
He also noted a distinction between camping and sleeping, and said sleeping is protected by the Boise decision while camping is not.
“With regards to sleeping versus camping, an individual is allowed to sleep, but not erect a tent or any other camping apparatus,” the lieutenant said. “The only change that occurred as a result of the Martin v. Boise decision was a relaxed stance on individuals who are sleeping, which prior to that would have likely been handled as a loitering incident.”
Citrus Heights municipal code 50-502 bars camping in the city, stating: “It shall be unlawful for any person to camp, occupy camp facilities or use camp paraphernalia in the city, whether on public or private property, whether paved or unpaved, except as expressly permitted by this article.”
Camping within city limits is allowed in designated areas, residential backyards with owner’s consent, or at authorized events, according to the code. The city has the authorization to abate and remove camp facilities and paraphernalia according to section 50-505, and Wells said police give a 72-hour courtesy notice before taking further action to clear out a camp.
Leslie Rust attended Tuesday’s demonstration with her three children. Rust said she was sleeping on the streets when she was eight months pregnant. She is now in a shelter and hopes to attain more permanent housing, but says there are challenges to transitioning into housing.
“If someone held our hand through the process,” she said. “Because we’re coming with bad credit, evictions, domestic violence, mental illness, drug abuse. We just need more case workers to actually get us where we need to be.”
Both private and public programs have been formed to help those willing to get into transitional and permanent housing, including the local nonprofit Homeless Assistance Resource Team and Everyone Matters Ministries. The latter is a Roseville-based nonprofit which acquires RV’s and travel trailers and rents them out at a low cost to provide transitional housing and mentoring to those seeking help.
Individuals like Sanchez also seek to do their part to help area homeless. The Citrus Heights City Council recognized him earlier this month by issuing a proclamation recognizing him for his efforts to feed and advocate on behalf of local homeless as well as helping resolve complaints. He is regularly seen delivering snacks and checking up on area homeless.
For Sanchez, homelessness can be a degrading situation that leaves a lasting impression, something he has personally experienced.
“There’s a stigma that stays with you, and it’s hard to explain,” he said. “It’s just sad the way people look at you.”
Want to share your thoughts on homelessness in Citrus Heights? The Sentinel welcomes letter to the editor or opinion columns for publication. To submit one online, click here.
Alfred Sanchez, known as the Snack-Man to area homeless, hands out a juice pack on Auburn Boulevard. // Thomas J. Sullivan
By Thomas J. Sullivan– It’s 8:45 a.m. on a recent Monday, and Alfred “Snack Man” Sanchez is busy loading up backpacks and getting his motorized scooter ready to make his early morning rounds.
For the last 18 months, Sanchez has been delivering a Zip-lock snack bag, a juice pack and new socks to the city’s homeless wherever he finds them.
“We might not see as many today, since it’s the first of the month, and many of those who receive benefits might not be around to see us,” Sanchez told The Sentinel. “We’ll try to see as many as we can.”
His friendly smile, big, bushy gray-black beard and fluorescent yellow t-shirt with “Snack Man” emblazoned in large black letters on the back has become a familiar sight among the city’s homeless.
Sanchez, who is disabled, has lived in Citrus Heights for over 20 years. He purchases snacks and juice packs for the homeless at his own expense, mostly from Grocery Outlet and the Dollar Store, at a cost of between $80 and $100 each month.
Each person on the street he encounters has a story to
tell, he explains. “I try to treat each and every one I meet with respect and
dignity.”
The Sentinel joined up with the Snack Man as he began his morning rounds, rolling down the north side of Greenback Lane towards Interstate 80 and searching behind the fast food restaurants, restaurants and retail stores lining Greenback Lane where he’s met homeless in the past.
“If you wake up
hungry, you’re going to have a bad day,” Sanchez said. “Hunger makes people
make bad choices, and in some cases that leads to desperation and arrest. I’m
hoping to bring them a measure of hope.”
On today’s trek, he makes certain to visit many of the city’s recycling centers where he finds those on bicycles toting big bags of bottles and cans, waiting to turn them in for quick cash.
We came across a young man, sound asleep in a battered red
Ford Escape. Sanchez left a bag of snacks on its left front fender.
Near the corner of Auburn Boulevard and Greenback Lane,
just behind a Vietnamese restaurant, a sleeping bag was left in the back
parking lot where someone recently had spent the night.
“Sleeping bags are precious out here,” Sanchez said. “I’m
surprised that this one was left behind.”
We rounded a corner and headed deeper into a parking lot where a swinging fence, locked at night, makes police patrols difficult to do. Seated on a short, concrete retaining wall, we encountered another one of Sanchez’s regulars.
Asked how she was doing, a blond woman with a weather-beaten face who appeared to be in her mid-40s replied, “Not too good,” with a forced smile. She appreciated the bag of snacks that Sanchez handed her.
“She had a history of mental health challenges,” said Sanchez. “We caught her on a good day.”
In addition to Zip-lock bags of snacks, Sanchez also hands out a card for Toni Morgan, the Citrus Heights Homeless Navigator.
“Many people in the
city are afraid of the homeless. They don’t see them as I do,” Sanchez said. “I
remember a time when there weren’t more than a handful of the homeless here.”
“The homeless population in Citrus Heights is constantly changing,” he said. “They’re often on the move, doing whatever they need to do to find shelter each evening and from the winter rains here. I also see a lot of new faces who haven’t yet heard of Snack Man.”
Sanchez said he’ll go to places where his motorized scooter can navigate and blows his whistle to attract attention if someone is in a more secluded creek area.
He knows most by their name and the last location he’s encountered them. Old and young, male and female, each has a story to tell and behavior to watch for.
Another older individual, “Andy,” under some shade by the Dollar Tree on Greenback Lane, declined a bag of snacks or a hot cup of coffee from nearby Taco Bell and appeared lost in his own world.
“Some area homeless have significant mental health issues
and their behavior is erratic, Sanchez said. “Since I travel these areas alone,
I have to approach each of them with caution as I introduce myself.”
“There are quite a few new homeless who’ve come into the city from Sacramento and other areas who just don’t know that there’s a Citrus Heights Navigator or what help might be available here.”
Sanchez, a practicing Muslim, says helping the city’s homeless on a daily basis is a pledge to practice the faith he believes. “I pray that God will accept each good deed I am able to do each day.”
“I’m here to help and to give them hope. There’s a lot of good people out here,” Sanchez said.
Those interested in learning more about Alfred “Snack Man” Sanchez can find videos of him interacting with local homeless on his YouTube channel.
