South Tahoe Area Collaborative Services (STACS) addressing homelessness and those facing crisis

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - When David Stevenson was promoted to South Lake Tahoe Police Chief one year ago, he promised to create a plan to improve his department's response to persons experiencing mental health crises, substance use issues and homelessness.

"We have a responsibility to collaborate with regional partners and local community-based organizations to help the homeless, and people facing addiction and mental illness in our community,” said Stevenson at the time.

The South Lake Tahoe Police Department (SLTPD) worked collaboratively with local partners in creating a plan to address the situation. They teamed with South Tahoe Fire Rescue, Barton Health, Cal-Tahoe JPA Ambulance, Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless, El Dorado County Behavioral Health Services, Clean Tahoe, Lake Tahoe Unified School District, Tahoe Youth and Family Services, and the Tahoe Transportation District.

The resulting program is called the South Tahoe Area Collaborative Services (STACS). SLTPD assigned Officer Mike Gamberg as the full-time STACS liaison in his role as the police department coordinator for the program.

Since the inception of the STACS program, Officer Gamberg has been reviewing calls for service regarding mental health, substance use and homelessness and providing statistics to command staff and their STACS partners monthly. Over the course of several weeks, SLTPD has received numerous reports of illegal camps, fires, excessive noise, and trash in area meadows and on private property. In the past, the only resource available was the use of temporary tools of citations and trespass warnings to solve immediate issues when they arose.

This process did not provide the necessary response to solve the problem or help people in need. With the development of the STACS program, SLTPD can now collaborate with area resources and provide these community members with access to more services and support.

On Aug. 4, Officer Gamberg met with the Homeless Coalition and El Dorado County Behavioral Health in the Trout Creek Meadow, in the first of many walkthroughs of area camps. The purpose of this walkthrough was to help the STACS partners identify areas where they can assist and provide services to those in need.

SLTPD said they will continue to respond to issues and reports from the public and issue trespass warnings and citations when necessary. In addition, the STACS program is designed to provide an alternative to police services, beyond enforcement, to help break the cycle of homelessness, improve its response to those in a mental health crisis and reduce calls for service.

STACS will continue to evolve in its new role in the South Lake Tahoe community. On the West Slope, the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office Homeless Outreach Team (HOT) has been a game changer in addressing the problem in the unincorporated areas of the county. They have been assisting other communities on their collaborative efforts with homeless and crisis outreach and have assisted SLTPD on STACS.