Paul Boden

After 28 years of publication, Street Spirit, the beloved street newspaper of the East Bay, will halt publication following funding loss, effective June 30, according to a statement from the paper.

Although the city of Berkeley has benefited from state-supported programs and local policies that aim to tackle houselessness, community members have been pushing for alternative and more substantial approaches.

Special Rapporteur Leilani Farha attended a community forum and visited Bay Area homeless encampments to meet with members of the homeless community while drafting the report.

At the meeting, the commission reviewed a draft memo to City Council, which recommended rejecting the use of tasers as a means of de-escalating conflict with police. Other agenda items included a presentation about the criminalization of homeless people, and allocation of funding for the upcoming fiscal cycle.