Politics & Government
Court Refuses to Block Albany Bulb Eviction
A federal judge this afternoon refused to block the City of Albany's plan to evict the longstanding homeless encampments on the Albany Bulb. The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer came in response to a suit filed Nov. 13.
A U.S. District Court judge this afternoon, Monday, rejected a request for an emergency injunction to block the impending eviction of the longstanding encampments on the Albany Bulb.
Judge Charles Breyer denied the request for a temporary restraining order in a ruling issued late this afternoon. The ruling followed a 2 p.m. hearing in his San Francisco courtroom on a motion by 10 Albany Bulb residents and the nonprofit Albany Housing Advocates to stop the city's planned removal of the estimated 50-60 or so people living in makeshift shelters and tents on the city-owned park property.
Plaintiffs' attorney Osha Neumann of the East Bay Community Law Center told Patch tonight that the ruling does not end the suit. The decision denied a temporary restraining order but did not address the main issues raised in the lawsuit, he said.
"All legal options are still on the table," he said. Other issues remain to be addressed, and the plaintiffs could still seek a preliminary or permanent injunction, he said.
In a series of decisions over the past several months, the City Council requested that Albany police begin enforcing the city's no-camping ordinance at the Bulb beginning last month so that the city could fulfill its longstanding goal of making the Bulb part of McLaughlin Eastshore State Park.
Attorneys for the city said in court papers filed Friday that the encampments pose unacceptable health and safety risks. The plaintiffs argued that the city lacks adequate alternative housing and that a planned temporary homeless shelter doesn't provide legally required accommodations for Bulb dwellers with physical and mental disabilities.
For more information on the suit and city's response, see:
Today's hearing, which lasted nearly an hour, featured three lawyers for each side facing off in the 17th floor courtroom of the U.S. Federal Building on Golden Gate Avenue.
Breyer spent much of the time focusing on the plaintiffs' assertion that the city's plan, which includes a temporary 30-bed homeless shelter next to the Bulb, would fail to meet requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Lead plaintiff attorney Maureen Sheehy of the firm Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton told the court that the city's temporary shelter doesn't provide reasonable accommodations for Bulb dwellers whose physical or mental disabilities cannot tolerate the close-quarters facility with bunk beds. Some of the people living on the Bulb also have physical conditions that require them to lie down during parts of the day when the shelter will be closed, she said.
Speaking for the city, attorney Toussaint Bailey of the firm Richards, Watson, and Gershon said the plaintiffs failed to meet the legal requirement that they specify what accommodations are needed and that the city's plan includes not just the temporary shelter but also assistance in finding other alternative housing and services.
The judge also noted a state Clean Water Program notice to the city that the encampments "pose a threat to human health and environmental quality” and pressed the plaintiffs on the city's argument that the Bulb encampments pose unacceptable health and safety risks. The city's court papers include a statement from Albany Police Chief Mike McQuiston describing several violent crimes at the Bulb as well as hostile encounters experienced by visitors to the Bulb. The city also cited human waste and used syringes at the Bulb.
Sheehy acknowledged that crime exists at the Bulb but said that it exists also in urban environments in general.
Breyer asked about the dangers posed not just to the Bulb residents but also to the larger community. Sheehy said the city has failed to take measures to address the problems, such as providing toilet facilities.
Attending the hearing were the 10 Albany Bulb dwellers who are plaintiffs and the president of Albany Housing Advocates, Julie Winkelstein.
Breyer ended the hearing without issuing a decision, and his ruling was posted later on the federal courts' PACER website.
Background on the Albany Bulb issues
Considerable controversy has been stirred by the city's plans to remove the longstanding encampments on the Albany Bulb and turn it over to the Eastshore Park. More information can be found in the many recent news articles and community blog and board posts about the Bulb. Click here for a list of titles and links.
Published Nov. 18, 2013, 5:29 p.m., updated 9:34 p.m.
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