Illegal campsites in Medford have dropped by more than 90% over the past three years after a massive effort from the community.

The Medford Police Department’s Livability Team counted 17 campsites in March, down from the peak of 257 in 2021, when COVID and the 2020 Almeda Fire sparked a sharp rise in tents.

In March 2023, the Livability Team counted 164 campsites.

The city of Medford has spent close to $30 million since 2019 to provide housing solutions for homeless individuals. At the same time, the city has crafted new ordinances that make it more difficult to pitch tents.

Many local organizations, the Livability Team and Medford Municipal Court worked together to deal with homeless issues.

ACCESS, Jackson County’s community action agency, manages a severe weather shelter in downtown Medford that houses up to 64 people.

“It has taken so many people, and so many partners to make this work,” said Sam Engel, executive director of Rogue Retreat, which houses about 415 people a night. “Everybody is pulling together to do their part.”

Rogue Retreat Crossings, the Kelly Shelter at the Navigation Center, The Redwood and Hope Village are some of the housing options Rogue Retreat provides homeless individuals, with funding from the city as well as from state and federal sources.

Engel said his organization has a waitlist of 800 people who would like to get into various programs. Some of these people may be sleeping in cars or have temporary housing.

Engel said some homeless people remain wary of seeking help.

“Somewhere along the line their trust was broken,” he said.

ACCESS has a number of programs including a regional food bank, a shelter program for about 30 to 50 people a month and a homeownership program.

ACCESS is also the lead agency for Jackson County Continuum of Care, a program that helps coordinate and provide assistance to homeless individuals.

“We have focused a lot of energy into strategizing with community partners,” said Melanie Doshier, director of support services at ACCESS.

Much of the infrastructure to support homeless people is now in place thanks to various funding sources over the past few years.

Doshier said the state funding will begin drying up in the near future, so ACCESS and other partners are strategizing ways to continue these programs.

Medford City Council, which has funneled dollars to Rogue Retreat and other homeless services, has also placed a ban on camping that affects large swaths of Medford, including public rights-of-way around schools, in public parking lots and along streams.

In 2023, the council decided to make it unlawful to camp, lie down or throw a bedroll on the ground within 500 feet of schools and other areas.

As part of the same ordinance, any form of camping within 50 feet of the top of the bank of Bear Creek and other waterways is also illegal.

Sgt. Jason Antley, who heads the Livability Team, said service providers, nonprofits, City Council, the Municipal Court and others have all pitched in to help this effort.

“Everybody is pulling together doing their part,” he said. “We’re not trying to outlaw homelessness, but we need to hold them accountable for unlawful behavior and we need to offer them a place to go.”

Antley said the different organizations need to coordinate and work together to help get individuals off parks, public places and private property, while placing them in some kind of shelter or finding mental health or addiction treatment if necessary.

“It’s a ridiculous amount of effort for just one person,” he said.

At the same time, the city wants to make the greenways, parks and other public places into places that everyone wants to use, Antley said.

Six police officers and support staff make up the Livability Team, which patrols the Bear Creek Greenway and downtown.

Antley said officers routinely patrol the greenway looking for campsites.

“Honestly, we’re just not seeing the volume of camps that we used to see,” he said.