Outreach teams and Chula Vista city crews are scheduled to move in and start moving out homeless encampments that have taken over Harborside Park.
There was so much illegal activity happening at the park, according to police, that the city voted to close it for 90 days until they figured out a solution.
However, some homeless advocates aren't happy with that decision and they're trying to take legal action to stop it.
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Mandy Lien is trying to take a page out of Martin v. Boise to keep the park open. That case says homelessness can’t be criminalized if people have no option to sleep indoors. She filed an amended complaint Tuesday in federal court hoping to protect the dozens of unhoused people living in encampments at Harborside Park, but it was denied.
She was dejected, but not deterred.
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“Hopefully this puts leadership on notice that we will keep learning from this and keep moving forward to protect their rights until you get the services they need," Lien said.
A chain link fence and tarp are the only things separating neighboringHarborside Elementary School from what police and park rangers say are illicit activities happening at the park. They say they've found drug paraphernalia and even dead overdose victims. Similar discoveries led the city to close the park's bathrooms and remove playground equipment.
“What if they grab them or give them a drug,” said Harborside Elementary school mother Mariana Calderon. “They’re so innocent that you never know what could happen."
As a result of those parental concerns and the park becoming what city leaders call a health and public safety crisis, the Chula Vista City Council voted to temporarily shut down the park and fence it off for at least 90-days, at a cost of nearly $350,000.
"If you're going to spend $350,000 to gate off a park, you can spend money to get people in hotels or inside so they can get the services they need to get well, heal and move on with their lives," said Lien.
The city of Chula Vista says12 nonprofits and their partners that will be at the park Wednesday to help move the homeless. The city says it has identified “sufficient spaces to accommodate people in Harborside Park that will accept immediate housing.”
“They’re pushing us too far to where that’s our home. You’re kicking us out of our home and it makes me feel depressed,” said Danyell No who’s set up a tent at Harborside Park.
No and her girlfriend recently had a notice posted on their tent ordering them to leave the park. It also said that services were available.
No said if they're not able to get adequate housing from the city, back to the shadows of the streets they'll go.
“We might go on E or H Street to find a place to hide, but it’s complicated to find the right place to hide from everyone,” explained NO.
The park is scheduled to be fenced off Thursday after all the unhoused people are moved Wednesday.
As for the federal complaint for a preliminary injunction against the city of Chula Vista that was dismissed, the City Attorney says the park's temporary closure was legal.
