El Paso County agencies remove problematic homeless camps on private property in Stratmoor Hills area

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- In recent months, homeless camps in unincorporated El Paso County, specifically those in the area of Stratmoor Hills / B Street, have been the site of violent crime and even a large fire.

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According to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office (EPCSO), law enforcement agencies have faced challenges in dealing with the camps, mainly the fact they were erected on private property and were either actively or passively permitted by the property owner or owners. According to the EPCSO, outside of judge-ordered civil action(s), this private property dynamic has prevented any ability of governmental agencies to conduct immediate, proactive enforcement/cleanup of the camps.

However, the EPCSO now reports that last month, as a result of a civil action filed by the County Attorney’s Office in district court with the goal of furthering public safety and enforcing county codes, a judge ordered Code Enforcement and sheriff’s office personnel to go onto these private properties on which the problematic homeless camps were erected and clear them out.  

The sheriff's office said that a month-long joint effort concluded yesterday involving El Paso County Code Enforcement and El Paso County Sheriff’s Office personnel that resulted in all but one of the camps situated along B Street and in Stratmoor Hills having been removed and cleaned up. 

The final remaining camp is set to be cleared out in January of 2023.