Judge gives Phoenix until November to permanently clear 'The Zone' homeless encampment

Phoenix has until Nov. 4 to permanently clear its largest homeless encampment, known as “The Zone,” a judge ruled Wednesday afternoon.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Scott Blaney set the deadline as part of his post-trial decision in Brown v. City of Phoenix, which was filed in August 2022. Residents and business owners near the downtown Phoenix encampment argued it is a public nuisance that subjects their properties to damage, litter and crime, and the city was not doing enough to fix the problem.

While the order does not tell the city how to clear The Zone, it requires the removal of all tents and makeshift structures by the deadline and demands public property be kept clean.

The Zone surrounds the Human Services Campus at South 12th Avenue and West Madison Street. The campus is home to more than a dozen nonprofits that serve people experiencing homelessness.

"The situation inside the Zone has gotten progressively worse, not better, since 2018 and has become dire since November of 2021," the order reads.

The decision is a blow to City Hall. Phoenix officials had already agreed to shut down the sprawling encampment but asked to be given until April 2024 to complete the task. During a two-day trial in July, city officials said a longer timeline for clearing The Zone would allow the city to continue adding shelter beds, ensuring everyone living there can be offered a place to go as the area is cleared block by block.

It took the city about four months to clear half of the blocks in The Zone. The ninth block was cleared on Wednesday.

"The City of Phoenix is disappointed with the Court’s ruling," Phoenix Office of Homeless Solutions spokesperson Kristin Couturier said in an emailed statement. "The City is addressing the area around the Human Services Campus strategically, one block at a time to ensure we can offer every individual we engage with shelter."

Phoenix officials are reviewing the ruling and exploring legal options, she said.

Cleanup continues: 1 arrested as Phoenix continues clearing ‘The Zone'

With just six weeks until the deadline, the city will have to remove about 500 people who still live in The Zone, according to the latest weekly estimate of Zone residents by the Human Services Campus.

All parties will return for a hearing on Nov. 30 to assess the city's compliance with the order. Blaney also dismissed the city's recent filing accusing a local business owner of dumping mattresses in the area saying that even if the allegations are true, they would suggest hypocrisy at most.

Ilan Wurman, an attorney for the plaintiffs, said he is pleased with the judge's decision and what it will mean for his clients and others who live and work near The Zone.

"This is a total victory that we're extremely excited about," Wurman said.

The ruling may also signal potential legal trouble for other cities grappling with street homelessness. By setting a legal example, it could encourage residents elsewhere to sue their own governments over homeless encampments.

"We really hope that we are setting a precedent and other cities look to our case as a model," Wurman said.

The attorneys representing the Phoenix residents and business owners on Wednesday filed a similar lawsuit against Tucson. Around 1,500 people are unsheltered in Pima County, according to the 2023 point-in-time count.

Sacramento is also facing a lawsuit after being sued Tuesday by Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho who says the city's homelessness crisis has become a public nuisance.

Helen Rummel covers housing insecurity and homelessness for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at [email protected].

Coverage of housing insecurity on azcentral.com and in The Arizona Republic is supported by a grant from the Arizona Community Foundation.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix given until November to permanently clear 'The Zone'