City shares more information about plan to house minors at Camp Roberts
–On Friday, May 7, Paso Robles Mayor Steve Martin released a report on plans to house unaccompanied migrant children at Camp Roberts.
Mayor Martin’s report said that the City of Paso Robles was notified of the potential to relocate migrant children from California’s southern border to shelter facilities at Camp Roberts, just north of the city.
“In a teleconference meeting with federal officials recently we were told as many as 5,000 unaccompanied migrant children could be processed at Camp Roberts,” said Martin. “I expressed concerns about the impacts on local traffic, medical services, educational services and housing. I was told that, if children were transported to Camp Roberts, they would not arrive all at one time, but in groups of a few hundred. I was also assured medical and educational services would be handled on-base and would not impact local agencies.”
Mayor Martin also expressed concerns about the needs of staff coming from out of the area and informed officials of the already tight housing market and the city’s reliance on local hotels for the tourism trade.
“I explained the housing situation clearly,” said Martin. “I insisted that, unlike similar operations in urban areas, this could have significant impacts on our community. I was assured I would be informed on plans as they develop.”
Martin said he had requested more information and assistance from state and federal representatives, “I have reached out to Congressman Salud Carbajal, State Senator John Laird, and State Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham for assistance minimizing impacts of this operation, should it be executed, and keeping the public informed.”
The city shared the following frequently asked questions and their answers:
Are the children monitored for infectious diseases initially & throughout their stay? Yes.
Where will medical care be provided? Onsite unless more acute medical care is needed, then it would be at a community hospital
Are they evaluated and monitored for involvement in human trafficking, sexual abuse, and gang affiliation? Yes, and before any placements are made a family relationship must be biologically established via DNA testing.
Are gang members identified and returned to their country of origin? This has not been mentioned.
Are DNA studies done to verify the children are related to people claiming to be family members? Yes, family reunification is the goal and before a child is placed with their identified family member, a DNA test is done to determine biological relation.
Are sponsors vetted to minimize the risk of sexual abuse for these children? Yes, which is part of the reason it takes longer to find a location for the children to be placed.
Where will the water & other resources come from? The Army Corps of Engineers would be responsible for building out any infrastructure that housing unaccompanied minors would require. As of today, the contracting process is on hold as HHS determines if Camp Roberts has the necessary infrastructure (including water) to house the children.
Where will teachers, counselors, medical staff, and security personnel be housed given the housing shortage in the area? Should Camp Roberts move forward in the consideration process, staff would be housed off-site potentially at hotels or an alternative housing site.
How will education be provided to help these children assimilate into American culture? Education is a wrap-around service provided at HHS sites and instruction is made available to all the children during their time at the facilities.
What individual, group, and organizations are involved in dealing with this issue? Health and Human Services (HHS) is the agency in charge of these sites. They contract with nongovernment organizations both public and private to provide services.
Those with questions not addressed here can contact Camp Roberts through their Public Affairs office: https://calguard.ca.gov/public-affairs.
Comments
