July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 35

munity members had expressed
their concerns about the Encampment.
Moreover, the City contended
there were " major public safety
concerns, including drug use and
major crimes and safety incidents,
including two deaths, one attempted
murder, and two cases of assault
with a deadly weapon. "
The City also raised serious safety
concerns regarding " fire hazards,
which pose a threat to the health and
safety of the encamped individuals,
as well as the general public. " Further,
the City referenced " public nuisances,
including human and animal
waste, needles, vandalism, theft of
City and County property, and damage
to the City's trees, plantings, and
grass. " The City also had cited " additional
incidents of violence, retaliation,
and vandalism at San Lorenzo
Park, " but the court found it was not
clear " whether these incidents are
properly attributed to the homeless
persons living in the park. "
As characterized by the Plaintiffs,
many of the City's emergency health
claims were " a product of the City's
own negligence, " which could have
been " remedied without forcing the
homeless persons out during the
COVID-19 pandemic. " While the
City had presented " compelling evidence
of numerous concerns regarding
the Encampment, " the federal
district court found the " degree and
severity of these issues " was subject
to debate and competing declarations
by the parties in this case.
In general, the court acknowledged:
" the City currently faces
multiple crises arising from the
pandemic. " With regard to the Encampment,
the court recognized
" the significant efforts and burden
the City has taken on during the
pandemic, including coordinating
with the County to add shelter capacity
at multiple sites and allowing
encampments at San Lorenzo
Park for the last nine months. "
After
balancing the
equities
in this particular case, the federal
district court held: " the City's
interest in cleaning and clearing
the Encampment in San Lorenzo
Park and the Benchlands at this
moment in time is outweighed by
Plaintiffs' interest in their constitutional
rights during what the Court
can only hope is the peak of the
COVID-19 pandemic. "
Public Interest
In addition, the
federal district
court acknowledged " the legitimate
public interest of protecting
the public health and safety, as well
as the need to protect and preserve
San Lorenzo Park and the Benchlands. "
The court, however, also
recognized the public interest in
" maintaining the
protections
afforded
by the Constitution to those
most in need of such protection. "
Moreover, in the opinion of the
court, " this preliminary injunction,
tightly tied to the current phase of
the COVID crisis, will benefit public
health at large " :
Ensuring that the homeless
persons have access to shelter and
vital services during the COVID-19
pandemic is imperative to help
stop the spread of COVID-19
amongst the population impacted
by this injunction. Further, it will
also help reduce the likelihood
that COVID-19
will spread
throughout the greater Santa Cruz
community, as suggested by the
CDC Guidelines.
As a result, the federal district
court determined " the public interest
also weighs in favor of a
preliminary injunction. " In so doing,
the court acknowledged " the
significant hardship on the City to
allow the Encampment to remain. "
However, " with the COVID-19
pandemic still raging, " the court
held " the balance of hardships tips
in favor of the Plaintiffs. "
Conclusion
Having applied the required factors
for issuing a preliminary injunction,
the federal district court concluded:
" Plaintiffs have met their burden to
show that a preliminary injunction
should issue to enjoin the City from
clearing San Lorenzo Park and
the Benchlands during the current
phase of the COVID crisis. " Accordingly,
the federal district court
granted the Plaintiffs' motion for a
preliminary injunction.
In so doing, the court noted " the
keystone of the preliminary injunction
is the current dire state of the
COVID-19 pandemic. " As a result,
the court indicated " re-evaluation
of the injunction will be necessary "
as " vaccines roll out and the pandemic
eases, dispersal of homeless
persons from the encampments may
no longer put them at greater risk for
COVID-19. " Because it was " possible,
indeed highly desirable, that the
pandemic eases more quickly than
this case proceeds to trial for injunctive
relief, " the court further directed
" the Parties to keep a watchful eye
on the situation and to submit periodic
status reports to the Court. "
For more information, see YouTube
videos at tinyurl.com/vr7678b5 and
tinyurl.com/464pjav4.
James C. Kozlowski, J.D., Ph.D., is an Attorney and Associate
Professor in the School of Sport, Recreation and Tourism
Management at George Mason University (jkozlows@gmu.
edu). Webpage with link to law review articles archive (1982 to
present): mason.gmu.edu/~jkozlows
PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G | JULY 2 0 2 1
| Parks & Recreation
35
http://www.tinyurl.com/vr7678b5 http://www.tinyurl.com/464pjav4 http://mason.gmu.edu/~jkozlows

July 2021 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of July 2021 - Parks & Recreation

July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - Intro
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - Cover1
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - Cover2
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 1
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 2
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 3
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 4
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 5
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 6
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 7
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 8
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 9
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 10
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 11
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 12
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 13
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 14
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 15
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 16
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 17
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 18
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 19
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 20
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 21
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 22
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 23
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 24
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 25
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 26
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 27
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 28
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 29
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 30
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 31
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 32
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 33
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 34
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 35
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 36
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 37
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 38
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 39
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 40
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 41
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 42
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 43
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 44
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 45
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 46
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 47
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 48
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 49
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 50
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 51
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 52
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 53
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 54
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 55
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - 56
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - Cover3
July 2021 - Parks & Recreation - Cover4
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2024
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2023
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/february-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/january-2022
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/december-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/november-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/october-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/september-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/august-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/july-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/june-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/may-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/april-2021
https://ezine.nrpa.org/nrpa/ParksRecreationMagazine/march-2021
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