Encampment Still Going Strong on City Hall Lawn

Look at these comments in the Santa Cruz sentinel. A woman was raped by a stranger so the newspaper had an article about how to drive homeless people out of downtown. Santa Cruz is particularly expensive for rent, and most of its jobs are near minimum wage. The residents tend to drive long distances for jobs. The thing is, all the central valley towns like Fresno also have high homeless populations, so it isn't like SC is unique. Also, downtown only has a few homeless and it's nothing like San Francisco. I personally avoid downtown because I can't afford anything there at the high priced stores, which isn't the case in some other middle class cities outside the state:

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Send the Skatepark police/ranger back to downtown instead ofdaily hassling clean short hair kids/adults with jobs at the new skatepark.

How about putting the homeless in a cage and ticketing them.

Get a JOB.
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Cloud Mechanic // Apr 26, 2007 at 8:59 am //
+2 votes
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Santa Cruz has not always been this way. I know, I was born and raised there.

If so much trouble is ocurring late at night, then the first thing to do is to institute a curfew from 11pm to 6am. Anyone not enroute from there to there is subject to arrest.

Adding more shelter space is a noble idea, but who is going t o pay for it. You have to realize that some of these “homeless” people are homeless because they want to be.
The council needs to pass ordinances against pan handling and make the penalty community service time…picking up trash, cleaning the streets, parks, athletic fields.
If the curfew doesn’t work, then turn up the heat a bit by forming a police tactile squad to sweep the avenue after 11pm to enforce it. Make jail time and community service mandatory.
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SC native // Apr 26, 2007 at 9:03 am //
+6 votes
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You can start by kicking all of the homeless trolls out of Santa Cruz. Put them on busses and move them to Oregon or Nevada. Enough is enough Santa Cruz has been dubbed “Loser Friendly” LONG ENOUGH!
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Sarah,

Your comments are typical of the attitude that is ruining this town. People like you that actually enable these scum are who are keeping them here,

You say:

“For crying out loud. If it was that easy to get a job in this town, don’t you think they would? Look a little deeper! Maybe they fell on some hard times! ”

Fell on hard times? PLEASE
They would get a job if they could? PLEASE

The majority of these scumbags CAME TO SANTA CRUZ from somewhere else to live their HOMELESS BY CHOICE “lifestyle” in a town that welcomes it!

As many have stated above. If those things listed are legal, which I CAN’T BELIEVE (but I do, it’s SC), we need to make them illegal and RUN THESE PEOPLE OUT OF TOWN! Make it so uncomfortable for them to be here that THEY GO BACK TO WHERE THEY CAME!

There is a homeless by choice network in this country and the cat is out of the bag. These “people” KNOW they can come to Santa Cruz from wherever they are from and live their ridiculous lifestyle here.

It’s time for this to STOP. Take SC back.

I hope this really happens as there SO MUCH potential for SC and it is being squashed by a TINY percentage. It’s not just downtown either. The Westside is a PIT as well.

CLEAN UP SC!!!!!!!!!!!
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Dan Birch // Apr 26, 2007 at 9:37 am //
+10 votes
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1) The homeless shelter near River Street and Highway 1 should be forced to pay the salaries of two full time police officers to cover the additional expenses occurred handling thier clients behavior. 2) The Union Pacific Railroad should be forced (by suing) to buy the SCPD a patrol vehicle that can be ridden on the tracks to police that corridor of crime and litter. 3) Families of the people injured and murdered along the River or in the Pogonip/Park type city properties should sue the city ( and win as is done in Santa Clara) for failing to secure the public safety. 4) Convicted gangsters and violent offenders should be banned from city limits. 5) Eliminate the needle exchange and the ability to buy $10 worth of heroin/crack/etc along Front Street and in Beach Flats. 6) Increase the fine and change the definition for littering then make litter enforcement a revenue generator.
ohn P. // Apr 26, 2007 at 9:52 am //
+13 votes
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Sarah,

I said “Homeless BY CHOICE” network. Not homeless network. I would never devalue t he horrible existence of REAL homelessness and the down and out in places like NYC, etc. We are talking about the typical SC homeless. Young, high, menance to society that CHOOSE to live this way.

The bleeding hearts need to take a good look around them and open their eyes to the SCUM that are on our streets.
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I feel we need to get the panhandlers and the loiterers off the streets of Pacific Ave. Just once I would like to walk down the mall and NOT have someone ask me for money, a cigarette or being harrassed for something. I think that there need to be more laws put in to place restricting people from that kind of behavior. It isn’t just homeless people, young teenagers also loitering downtown can be harrassing. I think that the panhandlers, either with signs or begging for money, are a put off to people, and not just tourist. I have been a resident of Santa Cruz for 27 years and I am tired of it. I try to avoid going downtown unless it is really necessary, which is unfortunate because a lot of my favorite shops are down there. Another issue that really bothered me last summer was the young adults “selling children for less than a dollar a day”. I don’t want to be walking down the mall, only to be chased by someone asking me to give money for this cause or another. I don’t like being solicited. I think that next time I go downtown I am going to wear a big cardboard sign that says “PLEASE DO NOT SOLICIT”.
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SC Locals // Apr 26, 2007 at 10:30 am //
+1 votes
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No police state!

Streamline the process for carrying concealed weapons. Self defense is the best defense.
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John P. // Apr 26, 2007 at 10:32 am //
+13 votes
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Sara,

“Ok… so homeless people everywhere else are real? John, you can’t know that they’re all part of this “underground network”. I realize that some people are homeless by choice (though i have to dispute the ‘national network’ theory), but you can’t use them to judge everyone.”

I didn’t say everyone, but take a REAL look at who is homeless downtown SC. The grand majority in THIS town are of the homeless by choice variety and YES it is known around the country in certain circles that some places (SANTA CRUZ) will tolerate their BS, while other places (Carmel, Los Gatos, etc.) will run them out of town within minutes. Who has the homeless problem? Santa Cruz, that’s who.

Try what I said above if you have any doubt. You’re a bleeding heart. Offer one of these ‘down and out” people $10 an hour to help you with something you need.


We need to stop the city from being sued. To do this stop supporting groups such as huffsantacruz.org. They create so much bureaucracy with their civil suits that it handcuffs the city leaders from doing anything.

Other ideas that will help us expedite change.

1) move the needle exchange out of the downtown
2) remove the metro from downtown. there should only be a small stop in that area.
3) Increase police presence 24/7 -
4) move the jail out of the downtown.
5) call the police when you see illegal activity 831-471-1131 save that number in your cell phone.
6) fight groups that oppose a cleanup. such as huffsantacruz.org. They need to be stopped!
7) vote for city leaders that demand change.
8) please do not give beggars money. You are not solving their problems. In fact your making their problems worse.
9) join local neighborhood groups. Like Santa Cruz neighbors . http://www.santacruzneighbors.com/there Strength in numbers!
10) love your city and encourage others to do the same. We need come up with creative ideas together and put them to work.

...to HUFF What sort of a heart do these people have that can not bleed? One like Cheney's?