A standoff continues Tuesday between residents of a Sausalito homeless encampment and city crews trying to evict them.
"Hell no, we won't go," they chanted.
Thirty or so homeless jousted with Sausalito Police as officers tried to coax them into leaving. The city had given these camp residents three days' notice to clear the tent city they've occupied for several weeks at the edge of Dunphy Park, located near high-priced waterfront real estate.
"We're going to see if that's going to hold true or not," Sausalito Police Chief John Rohrbacher said of the residents' refusal to leave. "We can actually just start taking their property and we don't want to do that either. That's not the answer. I actually don't mind if people want to…object for a while. At the end of the day, I'm sure it's going to go our way."
A view of the encampment, which houses roughly 30 people.Jeffrey Schaub/KCBS Radio
Robbie Powelson is a homeless housing advocate.
"People are hard-pressed and it's because of our system," he said. "Our system is making housing way too expense, then they're sticking the police on people that can't make rent."
The city wants the homeless move to another park where there are restrooms and storage facilities for their belongings. The impacted unhoused residents contend that location is filled with wet, rain-soaked grass.
"I'm here because I'm 64 years old and I'm too old and crippled to go anywhere else," one encampment resident told KCBS Radio.
Police and public works crews may start clearing out the area later Tuesday.
"We think it's the best place in town," Sausalito Mayor Jill Hoffman said. "Given all the factors, there's probably no ideal outdoor location for people to camp."
