Item 7: Exemption to Code on Overnight Camping

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Economic – The net impact to responsible stewardship of public resources is negative, as this has been an unanticipated and unbudgeted expense for the City. Another consideration for the economic impact is to the local economy. In the short term, there may be positive impacts associated with an emphasis on shopping at local markets, as well as negative impacts to businesses directly affected by unanticipated use of facilities or protests. Social – Several groups appear to experience the social impacts of the Occupy Eugene encampment differently, including: Occupy Eugene participants – There are likely positive and negative impacts, with the overall impact difficult to assess. The positive impacts include a place to protest and legally camp. The negative impacts include exposure to potentially unsafe conditions and behaviors. People experiencing homelessness – There are likely positive and negative impacts, with the overall effect difficult to assess. The positive impacts include the benefits of community, food and shelter. The negative impacts include exposure to potentially unsafe conditions and behaviors. Minors in the camp – There are likely more negative impacts to children and youth in camp. They also are exposed to potentially unsafe conditions and behaviors. Neighbors of the camp and people wishing to use the park – There are likely more negative impacts to neighbors and people wishing to use the park. They may not be able to freely use the park for public purposes, and there are increased arrests and citations for criminal behavior in the neighborhood. COUNCIL OPTIONS The City Council may: 1.Extend the exemption to Section 4.815’s prohibition on camping to allow Occupy Eugene to continue use of Washington-Jefferson Park for an additional period of time of __ days and schedule another work session before that deadline to provide an update to the council so the council can decide whether to grant another extension. 2.Extend the exemption to Section 4.815’s prohibition on camping to allow Occupy Eugene to continue use of Washington-Jefferson Park for an additional __ days as a final extension. No additional work session would be scheduled. 3.Don’t extend the exemption to Section 4.815 and instead, direct the City Manager to work with Occupy Eugene to remove all tents and other structures as soon as practicable. CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION No recommendation is forwarded at this time. SUGGESTED MOTIONS 1.I move to amend the City Council's November 9 motion exempting Occupy Eugene from the overnight camping prohibition under section 4.815 of the Eugene Code by changing the date from December 15 until ________. S:\CMO\2011 Council Agendas\M111212\S1112127.doc