A Maricopa County court judge said Phoenix must clear the encampment near the Human Services Campus, where more than 800 unhoused people sleep each night, by July. ruled by monday.

State of play: A group of nearby business owners and residents sued the city of Phoenix last August, alleging that the city caused “irreparable damage” by allowing camps to occupy sidewalks around their property. rice field.

• Plaintiffs told the court they witnessed people in the camp using drugs, defecating, and committing violent acts, and were ordered not to enforce most laws in the camp, known as the “Zone.” I was told by the police that I was there.

News promotion: Superior Court Judge Scott Blaney condemned the city in the ruling, accusing it of intentionally suspending enforcement of “crime, health and other quality-of-life laws and ordinances,” bringing “lawlessness and chaos to the Zone.” Stated.

• Blaney said the area was a “public nuisance” and the city had a July 10 deadline to remove all tents and other temporary structures from public right-of-way “as soon as practicable.” said it must.

Important reasons: To comply with the ruling, the city will have to find alternative places for the hundreds of people who live in tents. the provider told Axios Phoenix.

• Blaney suggested building a licensed campsite on a vacant lot with bathrooms and security.

What they say: Yasamin Ansari, deputy mayor of the district that includes the zone, told Axios Phoenix that he did not believe the ruling took into account the “unprecedented amount of resources” the city had put into the solution.

• The city added 600 emergency shelter beds last year and plans to add another 800 this year, she said.
• “I don’t think it’s easy to find city-owned land and move people around,” she said, instead of Phoenix working with the state and other cities to create housing for everyone in the encampment. We propose to find alternatives for

Line spacing: Amy Schwabenlender, executive director of Human Services Campus, told Axios Phoenix that at least half of the 800-plus people in the zone worked with outreach workers to receive meals, employment assistance, and other assistance on campus. He says he is.

• “The further people move away from this place, the more barriers there are to accessing those services,” she said.

Opposite side: Phoenix faces other legal battles from groups who believe the city is over-policing the homeless population.

• Arizona American Civil Liberties Union complained to the city Late last year, a federal judge ruled over the city’s policy of “criminalizing the homeless.” emergency order The city banned camp clearing last December.
• The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating allegations that the Phoenix Police Department “illegally seizes or disposes of the belongings of individuals experiencing homelessness.”

What we see: Will Knight, director of the decriminalization program at the National Homelessness Law Center, said this week’s county court order conflicted with the December federal ruling. This needs to be addressed before the city kicks anyone out of the zone.