 |
 |
From left, Frank Anderson, Sage Keaten, Kyle LaRue and Tess McDermott cheer the Santa Rosa City Council on Thursday after they voted 5-2 to issue permits allowing Occupy Santa Rosa to camp outside City Hall. KENT PORTER/PD
By KEVIN McCALLUM
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
Occupy Santa Rosa’s encampment on the lawn of City Hall will be allowed to stay for now after the City Council agreed to grant protesters camping permits following a dramatic and emotional emergency meeting Thursday.
After 4½ hours of testimony and discussion, the council agreed to pass an urgency ordinance that goes into effect immediately and makes it possible for individuals to obtain 15-day camping permits that come with a long list of conditions.
“I think this movement has come a long way in a very short time,” Councilman Gary Wysocky said. “I think you’ve learned that you need to focus and you need to have some achievable goals.”
Councilman Jake Ours, who was heckled at the previous council meeting for telling protesters they needed to remember they were “guests in our home,” said he was gratified to see the group got his core message to take control of the protest. He said he has high hopes the movement could create real change in the nation.
“I think that you all are the beginning of a unique movement that can set the tone for politics and set the tone for the presidential election, and I would truly like to see that,” Ours said.
The packed council chambers erupted in jubilation following the 5-2 vote, in part because it was far from clear if the measure would pass. An urgency ordinance requires five votes to pass, and Councilman Scott Bartley initially expressed hesitation, saying the movement needed to transition into its next phase instead of focusing on a right to camp.
But he shifted to the majority, joining Wysocky, Ours, Susan Gorin and Marsha Vas Dupre in supporting the measure. Mayor Ernesto Olivares and Vice Mayor John Sawyer both praised the goals of the movement and the passion and respect show by the activists, but voted against the measure, citing public safety, sanitation and liability concerns.
“I can’t take anybody’s safety lightly,” said Olivares, a retired police lieutenant.
Following the vote, Ben Browner, one of the Occupy Santa Rosa representatives who participated in a presentation to the council, could hardly speak.
“It’s still up to all of us,” Browner said as protesters cheered and hugged one another all around him.
The decision followed another marathon council meeting during which protesters explained their motivations. They said camping is intertwined with their right to free speech, and they begged the council to stand with them in their quest to highlight issues such as income disparity, the care of the homeless, and the corrupting influence of money in politics.
Browner, who said he’d been living in his van for the past 9months, apologized for the growing pains of the group, likening it to an adolescent going through profound changes very quickly as the movement grows.
“No one’s leading this. No one’s in charge. We’re all kind of making it up as we go along, and that’s creating a lot of chaos,” Browner said. “And we understand this.”
The group initially allowed anyone to take part in the movement, but protesters now realize that that led to problems that were detracting from the group’s goals.
Tuesday council members essentially told them to clean up their act or face eviction. It was a wake-up call to the group that helped energize them to become more organized and focused, Browner said. They have cleaned up the camp, organized the tents into a grid at the request of fire officials and pledged to clamp down on troublemakers.
“I feel like there’s a real insurgence of hope right now,” Browner said. “It all seems to be working out right now, and to cut it short at this point in time, I think would do the city a great disservice.”
It looked like the camping portion of the movement could be cut short after Tuesday’s meeting, when a police presentation about service to the encampment stunned many on the council.
Offenses reported ranged from sexual assault, battery on an officer, drug use, parole violation, and many others. Olivares said it appeared the camp was creating its own “high-crime area” downtown.
Chief Tom Schwedhelm on Thursday said his department had spent about $24,000 on the protest to date, including $8,000 in overtime. The total includes responses to the various marches that have occurred.
He refined the total number of police responses to the protest from 173 to 154, out of which there had been 49 arrests and 21people booked into county jail. About half the people arrested were not from Santa Rosa, Schwedhelm said.
Liz Basile, 83, was one of many people who said she was not actively protesting, but was inspired by the intelligence and passion of the young people she’s met at Occupy site.
“They give me pride and hope for the future,”
Wysocky said the group had impressed him most with the way it treated the homeless and mentally ill with compassion.
“A society is judged by how it treats its most vulnerable and you are showing us the way,” he said.
“There is not one person up here that doesn’t recognize the truth of what you are saying,” Gorin added.
The protests in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement began Oct. 15, and tents began sprouting up on City Hall Oct. 29. City officials opted not to immediately enforce their ban on camping on public property without a permit,
Olivares said it was the right decision at the time, but it led to “unanticipated consequences” that included a surge in law enforcement responses to the area, sanitation concerns, and complaints by some city workers that they were uncomfortable in their own workplace.
City Manager Kathy Millison said more work needs to be done on how the permits will be granted and when the process will start. She said she hoped it could begin by Monday.
“We haven’t ironed out all the details yet,” Millison said.
The conditions for a permit include:
– Every adult camper has to give the city his or her name.
– Every tent owner has to get a separate permit and a tag to be affixed to the tent.
– Tents need to be contained to the two northern lawns of City Hall.
– Tents must be 20 feet away from buildings, and spaced at least five feet apart.
– Each tent must be limited to four campers.
– No pets except service dogs allowed.
– No cooking, open fires, generators, space heaters or storage of flammable material such as propane.
– No smoking, drinking, drug use or glass bottles.
– All trash must be removed from the site.
– No digging, trenching or disturbing landscaping.
– No disruption of City Hall operations or nearby businesses.
– Campers under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
—–O—–
Loading ...
Subscribe by Email
Follow us on Twitter
We can hope that having the Santa Rosa City counsel tied up with their
guests out on the lawn, they will be too busy to be foolishly spending taxpayer dollars on some new blue sky project.
Madea, to say health health and safety issues are being dealt with appropriately I wonder if you’re not the one who is clueless about what is going on at City Hall. The types and number of violations are disturbing for those of us who obviously care enough not to contribute to big list of crimes OSR has brought.
http://www.facebook.com/STOPoccupySR
These “occupiers” are a stain on the backside of our beautiful city. I will do everything in my power to ensure that everyone I know stays away from downtown. I will not advise any family members to come to town. I will drive to Windsor or another town to get everything I can get in downtown Santa Rosa. These squatters are a disgrace to our town.
Jay Behr,
Using your outline, I maintain that:
These characters are the fake astroturf arm of the radical “progressive” left wing of the Democrat Party. They have nothing but hatred and contempt for your aspirations for a free society in which our politics are not bought and paid for by Union and environmental interests.
They try to sell you the idea that they are protecting us from some nefarious right wing agenda or the oppressive hand of the free market capitalists, but the real agenda is to complete the union coup, by forcing an agenda on you under the guise of justice using class warfare.
They are a dark force in secret service to the progressive politicians, environmental special interests and unions.
Don’t be fooled by their misleading hype or outright lies.Your real friends are the freedom loving patriots who will stand with you through thick and thin.
To ‘Jay Behr’:
OK,now we’re talkin’.
Rather than swim in that pool of poor propaganda, I’ll speak for myself.
I beleive in the Free Market.
A place we used to occupy in America.
A place where a bunch of dreamers go to bed at night thinking about how they can parlay they’re resolve, their local knowledge, ideas, their unique skill set into a way to BE OF SERVICE to the community.
No fascist orchestration, interferance or ‘help’ from government.
THEN a very honest, organic, basic phenomina takes place.
THE COMMUNITY DECIDES, and speaks with their patronage($) if the service, the product, the idea is beneficial to them.
It can be tough, like the jungle, only the strong survive. Fortune favors the brave. But it’s honest and real, and it worked, remember?
The Constitution is the best societal framework ever conceived.
Agenda 21 authors (globalists) came up with the term ‘Public/Private Partnership’ to legitimize fascist ideology. It’s in the UN’s book: Agenda 21; Sustainable Development. To a Constitutionalist, which is what we are supposed to be in these United States, the term is an OXYMORON!
Like ‘Church and State Partnership’.
It is the colution between the two that got us to the oppressive, fascist place we are now.
Like the tyranny that is the Federal Reserve.
Fact: Our entire landscape is being shaped by Agenda 21 at this time.
Fact: ICLEI is the local implementation arm of UN Agenda 21.
Fact: Santa Rosa is an active member.
Search ICLEI on the search window of the cities site.
I’m not into politics, don’t consider myself a Democrat or Republican. That is a charade engineered to distract and polarize from what’s really goin’ on.
I’m into a free and abundant humanity. Free of contrived shortages and problems that are engineered to serve a few.
The only us and them that matters is the oppressors and the oppressees.
Other than that, it’s ALL US.
Which one are you, ‘Jay’?
The New World Order isn’t new.
The World is not behind it.
And it is far from orderly.
I WANT AN ANSWER TO A QUESTION!
WHY DO WE BELONG TO ICLEI?
WHY WEREN’T WE ASKED?
I WILL ASK ‘TILL THE SILENCE IS DEAFENING!
You can wave, I’ll be the one with the bull horn on the corner asking if I don’t get an answer soon.
“Note to Occupiers: Tea Party/Agenda 21 folks are not your friends”
These characters are the fake grass-roots arm of the right-wing of the Republican Party. They have nothing but hatred and contempt for your aspirations for a more just society in which our politics are not bought and paid for by corporate interests.
They try to sell you the idea that they are protecting us from some nefarious foreign agenda or the oppressive hand of the federal government, but the real agenda is to complete the corporate coup, by privatizing the last remnants of the public sector.
They are a dark force in secret service to the 1% corporatocracy. Don’t be fooled by their misleading hype.Your real friends are the labor unions and the progressive groups have have been standing with you from Day One.
@ Madea
I have listened to all of you speak, you each had 2 min a piece at council and I listened to every one of you all 3 days. I think I should know where you are coming from by now.
My stand: I do question the jobs being sent overseas like GE did; I do question what foods I eat, which is why I put in my own garden and I am now canning my own foods; I do question what our kids are being taught in school, which is why I get pocket constitutions to as many classrooms as possible and pay attention to what the school board and sacramento is doing for our schools; I do bank at a local bank and have for 20+ years; I also know each and every one of my neighbors, to which I actually stood up in front of city council a while back and said I wish more people got to know their own neighbors, offering to help bring in garbage cans for them when needed among other things.
Everyone has a right to free speech and to protest, but camping on city hall lawn does not get your message across very well at all. Go home at night, stay healthy and protest during the day when people actually are seeing you. Don’t stay out overnight you can get sick from the cold and none drives by at 3am to see you protest.
@ Karyl Averill, whats the difference between “poop-throwing derelicts” and just pooping on the City Hall premises and on the roof of the City Hall?
I would argue no difference at all…and the permits were still issued…your argument has no substance.
Perhaps this is the new economic development policy we all have been waiting for-”City Hall KOA Campground” – the City can make money off of this and not have to charge for parking at Howarth Park now! Ahhhh, the City Designed For Living. Our Council must be so proud to think of such creative solutions. Next year maybe they can have the recycling facility move into their courtyard.
The point of civil disobedience is not to get off scot-free, but to willingly accept the punishments of an unjust system, to shame that system into reform.
The Occupy movement can’t even get that part right.
“Ah the blood of tyrants and rebels make good fertilizer for a democracy.”
This has been a healthy debate thus far, somehow I think new city counsel men will develop out of this.
I am curious at how all this will end at this point.
Maybe the cronyism at city hall will end.
One just never knows.
I am simply amazed at the amount of people who comment on here are so judgemental obviously without truely understanding the complex issues that “Occupy” encompasses. I am 99% sure that NONE of the commenters have nor would go down to City Hall to ask questions of any kind just as they don’t question all of the jobs that are outsourced to “cheap labor” countries, nor do they question what is in the foods they eat or what children are being taught in school, or why the banks HAVE to impose such exorbant fees, or why don’t we all pay the same tax percentage. Why should they? They don’t even know their neighbors. Obviously Health and Safety issues are being dealt with appropriatly and other issues are being handled with much more maturity than the uninformed comments here are being handeled with. I think it is a beautiful thing that all of these people who range from retired health professionals, actively employed teachers, nurses, mental health professionals, store owners, lawyers, single parents and students as well as layed off fire men, mechanics, health care professionals, teachers, disability workers, and yes even homeless folks are willing to do what it takes to make sure that this country properly takes care of every individual fairly… even those of you that don’t get it. And Yes Skippy. Children HAVE been known to cry themselves to death while being ignored. And those who don’t grow up with insecurity issues, seperation anxietys, phobias, personality disorders, and usually don’t have a real good understanding of a well functioning relationship so either become abusers or continue to allow other people to abuse them as their neglectful parents have done. And yes…I do have kids. Two succesful happy adult daughters and three younger boys. And I teach them all that when you really don’t understand what the conversation or issue is about it is always best to keep your mouth shut and let people think you’re a fool than to open it and prove them right.
What great points you all make! It sure would be nice to be home, warm, dry and comfortable. Yet the bulk of Occupy Santa Rosa are concerned citizens, taxpayers just like you, who are not satisfied with how politics as usual has continued. There are 70 lobbyists per Congressman, and most of America looks away and does nothing.
We have reached a tipping point because the majority of Americans have been taken advantage by veiled conglomerates posing as corporations. We paid GE subsidies last year, and their profits were the best ever, while their employment stayed the same. 99% of Americans paid more taxes that GE AND BP *combined*.
If you want to be an armchair activist like I used to be, and you are comfortable staying angry, then stay home. At least OSR is sacrificing their comfort to discuss solutions to these very common, very NON PARTISAN, very populist grievances.
Who knows? Occupy Santa Rosa’s passion and organizational skills could be a benefit to this community. There is already a plan in place to resod the lawn when OSR leaves.
If they (we) we irresponsible, poop-throwing derelicts, I suspect that plan wouldn’t be in place.
As well, please be respectful of city council members. They have shown us an abundance of respect.
Thank you.
Karyl
Signatories to the permit “… shall indemnify and save harmless the City of Santa Rosa …” . That is a heavy responsibility. Understand what you are signing.
Is this all for real? Am I losing my mind? When these people are laying in their tents at night, do they contemplate the vastness of their own irrelevance?
Evidently not. The people who are squatting in that park were obviously raised to think that they’re special, that they matter, that the world somehow should stop and take notice of what they’re doing. This reminds me of a quote from Mark Twain, “Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”
One word for the council members who voted to allow the occupiers to stay — coward.
The SR City Council is pathetic for sure. It’s hard to imagine these people are actually voted in by the general public.
I don’t shop downtown because of the parking meters and clearly won’t even consider supporting shop owners who let uneducated, drug infused, spoiled brats ruin their businesses. This is tragic.
@ (so called)Non Violent
“Here is the real outcome. The City of Santa Rosa knew that if it attempted arrests for protesting that the City would expend large amounts of legal costs only to be sued successfully by those arrested.”
Wrong, this was not about protesting, in fact protesting was encouraged. This was about the Occupiers ignoring the no camping ordinances that were already set in place and for weeks, the council tolerating the movement because the majority of them agrees and supports the movement. They gave them a free pass I’m sure they would not have given, let’s say, the Tea Party. Their right to protest was not the issue…The fact is that the council, unfairly gave into a small group and amended laws for them. They unfairly chose to ignore the rights and safety of the rest of the citizens of SR as well as their many coworkers who are fearful to come to work each day.
The fact is, if the council would have did their job and denied the permits, yes…there most likely would have been arrests and or violence, and it would have been the direct consequence of the occupiers refusal to abide by the law set in place.
The police are NOT the bad guys here as you are set on preaching on this forum. Your constant hate speech directed at the Police is not only irresponsible, but dangerous. You should pray the fundamental foundation of our Nation is restored rather than fundamentally changed…with restoration, your vitriolic speech is your right…with fundamental change,your vitriolic speech will be limited and eventually it would be illegal to say such things.
What a fool
Sheriff Andy would be my second choice.
Curtis LeMay is my first.
REMEMBER, the seeds, the initial catalyst for OSR was INSTALLED.
Again, NOT to take anything away from many bright people that have legitimate things to say.
So if the dynamic between OSR and the City seems ‘peculiar’, that’s why.
Although the complexion of the movement is now more genuine in the absense of installed speakers and shills, City management was complicit in the initial ‘social engineering’.
It seems ‘Moveon.org’ and other ‘progressive (read;socialist)Democrats’ were at its conception.
Which explains why Lisa Maldonado was a paid speaker.
This town sure isn’t like Mayberry.
Andy Griffith woulda’ smoothed this whole thing over by now.
The whole concern at last nights city camping meeting seemed, in the councils eyes, to revolve around whether or not there was sufficient water for the protesters to wash their hands and how the gray water would be disposed off. Mother Gorin went on and on about that.
If the kids can’t figure out how to wash their hands when they are away from home, it is too late to teach them.
The problem is the mob can’t figure out how to do much. I wonder how many of them get along without guidance from their parents. They seem pretty inmature and very self centered. Typical of the age. Too bad this all has to play itself out in public to their embarassment and our expense.
The old hippies, well they are always with us singing their “from the heart, we love ya man,” diatribe hate of American society, government and military.
This little group of disaffected,alienated trolls have pitched their tents of resistance in the shadow of city hall until something happens. What that something is, nobody knows. In the process, they had co-opted the city council and will dominate the city agenda for as long as they remain bivouaced.
It is disgrace and brings nothing but shame to the city council who have acted irresponsibility. This maybe a new low for a council that has not distinguished itself. Weak as water as my mother use to say.
I have a solution.
All Occupy supporters that have a home or a place to live should take in as many occupiers as necessary each night.
That way, the occupiers can continue their protest during the day and have a shower and two or three hot meals a day as well.
This will be a win-win for the City, the occupiers and those who really want to be down for the struggle with the occupiers. I’m sure that in Sebastopol Johnathon Greenburg and Sheppard Bliss, as well as Ross Mendanhall, Tim Ryan and any council members that approve would be more than enough to comfortably house the occupiers ,their children and pets during the cold winter months.
I certainly think this would be better for the babies and young children and is the compassionate and responsible thing to do.
I have a 40 foot diesel motorhome. It is self contained so there are no sanitation issues to worry about.
Where do I get my permit so that I can camp at Howarth Park on a 24/7 basis?
What? Camping isn’t allowed on City property? Sorry! If it’s ok for the rent-a-mob to camp on City property, then it’s also ok for everyone else.
Would you expect anything less from passive progressives unless it was someone who actually works and pays taxes..then they would baste and their socialist ilk do the same…pathetic cowards!
I thought before taking office elected officials took an oath to uphold the law. No longer, apparently. They just make it up as they go along. This situation will unfortunately need to get worse, and it will, before it gets better. What a waste.
So, it’s let the camping continue and keep spending scare city resources to police a movement that is about little more than demanding a free lunch from everyone else.
Meanwhile, the city and county manage to act in ways that prevent lawful businesses from actually accomplishing something. The PD ought to look into what the city’s new regulations on cab companies is doing to cab drivers. Keep it up and I hope the city has plans for a mighty big campground.
These camping permits are open to ANYONE on a first-come-first-served basis — as was made clear last night. There will be limited space. If others besides this group want to put up a tent for a different cause (or for no cause), they have just as much right under the new ordinance conditions. Just wanted to note that for the record.
At occupy Atlanta the Fulton County Health Department confirmed Wednesday that residents at the homeless shelter where protesters have been occupying have contracted the drug-resistant disease. WGCL reports that a health department spokeswoman said there is a possibility that both Occupy Atlanta protesters and the homeless people in the shelter may still be at risk since tuberculosis is contracted through air
I look forward to the day when these childish malcontents are swept from the streets.
Perhaps the cold rain and wind will do the trick.
Of course, the only attention they get is from the endless PD stories about their cause or plight or whatever injustice they claim motivates them.
I suggest we ignore them. That would be the worst thing we could do to them, as they would be without their automatic audience.
Then they will just fade away; their 15 minutes having concluded.
No child ever cried themselves to death while being ignored during their tantrum.
Let’s see if it works the same with the Children Of Occupy.
So…after hearing about the safety concerns of Police and Fire, public health issues, and the fears of City Hall employees, the City Council still approved the camping permit. Unbelievable.
“Guests in OUR home” says the lame bureaucrat.
A total disconnect by the fool. He actually thinks that the public lawn paid for by the public belongs to HIM and his government buddies.
What a fool.
Here is the real outcome. The City of Santa Rosa knew that if it attempted arrests for protesting that the City would expend large amounts of legal costs only to be sued successfully by those arrested.
And, of course, any illegal act by rogue police officers such as clubbing without cause would be further litigation against the city.
The City simply decided it was outnumbered and better lay low. The “permit” is simply their pretend way of claiming authority and the usual excuse to steal money from the public.