State agencies were told to clear encampments. It’s not clear that much will quickly change in San Diego.

Elijah Biddle was asleep in his tent a few nights ago when he heard the first beep.The 26-year-old awoke with a start. More beeps followed, the sounds of a truck backing up. It must be a cleanup crew, Biddle thought. Someone nearby said the California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, was headed to their encampment under a freeway overpass.Biddle had lost belongings during previous sweeps, and a bike, a partially assembled generator and an urn holding his brother’s ashes were all in the area. What could he grab quickly?As time passed, no crew appeared. The beeps had come from some other vehicle. Still, Biddle spent the rest of the night awake.The growing number of people on local streets know they’re lying on unstable ground, an awareness heightened late last month when Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order telling California agencies to clear encampments on state property and asking municipal governments to do the same. On Thursday, Newsom increased the pressure, vowing...