Last year’s U.S. Supreme Court decision in City of Grants Pass v Johnson ruled city governments could sweep homeless encampments without violating individuals’ rights. Before this ruling, cities were prohibited from removing unhoused people from public spaces if they had no shelters available. In Silicon Valley, the debate following the Grants Pass decision focused on problems with criminalizing unsheltered homelessness. There has been far less focus why so many cities lacked shelter capacity in the first place and what this means for their ability to address homelessness humanely and effectively. Historically, California cities have rarely invested in social services, including...