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SAN CLEMENTE – Steven Gustafson got up on Friday, May 24 at 5 am and prepared his stuff to be ready to leave his campsite on a North Beach parking lot and move to a storage place in the city before midday.
"I'm so happy that they gave us this lot," he said. "I was going to be ready, whatever happens. I want to be away, where people do not have to look at me. "
Gustafson, 63, a former Whittier resident who became homeless in 2016 and arrived in San Clemente after living in the streets of Dana Point, was part of a dozen homeless forced to leave North Beach as a result of An "emergency" order adopted by the San Clemente. City Council Tuesday.
The ordinance forbids camping on private property, but offers a camping option to homeless people who have been pitching their tents for weeks near the Metrolink station. The ordinance addresses immediate threats to the safety, health and well-being of the public.
The nearby storage yard measures less than half a acre and allows members of the homeless community to pitch their tents at a cost of about $ 50,000 for the city. The concrete floor is covered with decomposed granite and the area is lit and fenced. There are security cameras, a trash service and a bathroom. The city will provide a security guard for night surveillance.
The lot has a view of the Pacific Ocean and is in front of a new development of single family homes.
Friday's move took place despite the threat of lawsuits and lawyers representing San Clemente and two other towns in southern Orange County filed a motion to disqualify the judge in a February federal lawsuit filed in the name of homeless.
On Wednesday, Brooke Weitzman, a lawyer representing homeless clients and a non-profit group involved in the lawsuit before US District Judge David O. Carter, threatened to seek an injunction if San Clemente moved forward with his resettlement plan.
And while the relocation was taking place in North Beach on Friday, a petition was filed in federal court on behalf of San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano and Aliso Viejo for Judge Carter to be removed from his presiding Civil Rights naming these three cities with Dana Point. , Irvine and Orange County.
The lawsuit argues that anti-camping orders and other laws in the five southern county towns criminalize homeless people.
In seeking the disqualification of Carter J., the motion filed on Friday affirms that he can not remain impartial because of his past actions in a lawsuit for 2018 that resulted in settlements with several cities in the north and south. Orange County Center and the opening of shelters for the homeless.
Among the critics, the motion for disqualification cites Carter 's "vast gathering of personal facts and investigations" in the 2018 case and argues that, seeking a comprehensive settlement with a focus on the issue, he said. opening shelters around the county, the judge "crossed the line of the arbiter to lawyer."
The judge also issued "harsh criticisms" against the five southern county towns, according to the motion, "warning that cities" do not want to "put him in the position of writing decisions court. "
Read the motion for disqualification
San Clemente has been fighting for a few years to open a shelter.
Friday, more than 100 residents gathered in North Beach to witness the move. Staff from the Orange County Agency and city officials walked into the parking lot and stopped in front of tents reminding homeless people of the city's new rules.
Officials from the Orange County Sheriff's Department on Thursday warned the homeless and the city posted parking notices on the same day. About nine OCSD deputies were present Friday to monitor the move.
At noon, city staff drove trucks through the parking lot and picked up their belongings. Personal items, including tents, boxes and clothes, were photographed. Every homeless person has signed forms authorizing city officials to move their property. Once the items were loaded, the city provided a van to take people to the new location.
The locals applauded and applauded the caravan of vehicles leaving the car park.
"I think it's a good day if we eliminate that from North Beach," said Gene James, a resident of San Clemente and a recent city council candidate. "We can not continue to allow that to infect, it goes from a public safety issue to a health crisis."
Residents complained of being exposed to public defecation, urination and other unhealthy conditions. They also pointed out the use of drugs and needles buried on the beach.
Two weeks ago, more than 200 people filled City Council Halls at an impromptu public meeting organized by Mayor Pro Tem Dan Bane and City Councilor Laura Ferguson to discuss the homelessness situation. .
Without temporary shelter, law enforcement and municipal officials are required to allow homeless people to sleep in public places, following the recent Martin v. Boise who banned cities from forcing homeless people out of the streets they had nowhere to go. go but a city sidewalk, park or other public space.
On Thursday, MPs responded to North Beach after the fight between two homeless men. Witnesses reported to the OCSD that a man had been attacked so brutally that he was unconscious in a pool of blood. He was then taken to a nearby hospital where he was operated on.
"I think it's an important first step," said Lisa Edone, a 20-year-old resident of San Clemente. "I'm glad people are using some of the resources that the city offers. But there are a number of people who say they do not want to go. My concern is, where will they go?
Duane (Gibson) Nichols, a Navy Veteran and one of three homeless named in the lawsuit against San Clemente, the other four towns and the county, removed his tent but chose not to accept from municipal staff offers. He said he was working with county health officials and was hoping for some kind of permanent support housing.
"Nobody knows what the rules are going to be in the new place," he said. "I came here because I love the area. I did not come for shelter. If I do not like it, I go camping and I camp.
Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correct the cities involved in the lawsuit.
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