West Oakland business says situation getting worse after encampment clearing, fires

Business owners on 23rd Street, between West and Brush Streets, say they don’t feel safe, as they said the encampments and dumping continues to get worse.

Cameron Brian is the owner of Transmission Gallery, located on West Grand Avenue. The back of his building is on 23rd and he’s concerned the recent cleanup of an encampment on Martin Luther King Jr. Way and West Grand may have pushed more people his way.

“We’re compassionate. But at some point the compassion starts to wane and you start to worry for our safety and their safety,” said Brian.

His worries are warranted, saying there have been multiple fires recently.

“This is evidence of one fire,” said Brian. “This is the large fire that you have photographs of.”

One fire happened on Oct. 1, damaging the building across from him. A sign on the burned concrete wall says “Paulette R-I-P”. Brian said she died in a fire a few months ago.

He estimates there have been six fires in the last year, 10 in the last two years. He worries his building could be next.

“This is my gas line right here, and they tore the door off,” said Brian, pointing out exposed pipes. “I don’t come out here and fix things because I really don’t want to confront these people.”

He can’t use his back door right now at his business because a tent is blocking it. Brian could see the fire damage, and other things, from his office window.

“They don’t look up, they just continue to do what they do,” said Brian, looking out his window. “Which includes all sorts of nefarious things.”

CBS News Bay Area saw what appeared to be a drug deal while speaking with Brian.

“I tend to consider this not so much a homeless encampment but a tolerated crime scene, people aren’t really sleeping here at night,” said Brian. “What they are doing is business out of these tents.

Brian says it gets busier, and potentially more dangerous, later at night.

“Its continuous activity in the back,” he said. “Usually until 6 or 7 in the morning.”

City crews said they cleared out the nearby MLK encampment last month because of the crime happening there.

Mayor Sheng Thao said the city plans to follow up with enforcements in the areas they’ve cleared, but she says while some people are accepting resources, the city is limited in the help it can offer.

“Until the federal government really takes seriously funding rehabilitation centers and funding mental health facilities we’re going to be displacing certain marginalized groups,” said Thao.

Despite all this, Brian doesn’t plan to leave, but he wants to see the city take action by closing off the street, at least temporarily.

“Clear it off, clear it out,” said Brian.

He is in talks with city officials and is hopeful for the future of this area and his gallery.