San Luis Obispo County officials announced Tuesday that the Oklahoma safe parking site in San Luis Obispo is officially closed.
The site was located off of Highway 1 between San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay.
The Homeless Union is suing San Luis Obispo County over the closure of the safe parking site.
The county initially announced the parking site would be closed on March 18, resulting in the Homeless Union suing San Luis Obispo County over the closure of the safe parking site. A judge then issued a temporary restraining order keeping it open until March 29 and later extending it until April 29.
At the end of April, a judge denied the San Luis Obispo Homeless Union's request for a preliminary injunction, allowing the restraining order keeping the site open to expire at 3 p.m. on April 29.
As of April 29, 10 people remained at the safe parking site. A settlement was reached, allowing those individuals to remain at the site until 5:00 p.m., May 6.
In that agreement, the County agreed to pay the Union $60,000 to fund temporary lodging and related relocation assistance for the ten people during their transition to an alternative location.
As of Tuesday morning, all individuals left the area and workers began to dismantle the site. That included the removal of fencing, showers, and restrooms. Any vehicles or property left at the site will be stored by the county for up to 90 days.
The site was opened in 2021. County officials said it was intended to be just a temporary location for homeless individuals and families to stay in their vehicles while they looked for more permanent housing.
However, the Homeless Union claims officials failed to help them find better housing options.
As part of the agreement, the Homeless Union will drop its appeal of the judge's recent decision but is still moving forward with the lawsuit.
"We actually were able to get people housed because of the pressure that we put on the county, and we intend to move forward aggressively and immediately with our lawsuit," said attorney Anthony Prince at a press conference held outside the San Luis Obispo County Government Center on Monday. "We're going to be adding more defendants, more plaintiffs and more causes of action, and we feel confident that when we get this case in front of a jury that we'll get justice."
In a statement, county officials said, "the County remains confident that the judicial system will continue to recognize the diligent and compassionate work done by the County's employees and its nonprofit partners."
Overall, county officials say more than 125 people were served at the Oklahoma Parking Site.
