Irvine residents say they plan on fighting a new plan that would house up to 400 homeless individuals in tents on county-owned land.
They say they're concerned over the facility County Supervisors have proposed to house hundreds of homeless people next to Great Park in Irvine. An initial proposal called for housing 200 individuals on the property, with the rest going to camps in cities like Laguna Nigel and Huntington Beach.
Irvine Mayor Don Wagner says the city is going to put a fight over the location at a meeting next Tuesday.
"It's a terrible spot, a spot without any facilities whatsoever to house human beings."
The new camp has been proposed by the Orange County Board of Supervisors as a solution for the over 700 people who were cleared out of an encampment next to Angel Stadium and the Santa Ana Riverbed. Advocates say the spot in Irvine is the only place that has been zoned properly for a shelter.
The latest proposal would establish housing for 400 people on a piece of county-owned property near Great Park, eliminating other cities from consideration. All three cities have taken legal action and a federal judge will hear from both sides on April 3rd.
Mayor Wagner says there's not enough time to get the property ready for the homeless residents.
"As it stands currently, this property is entirely uninhabitable and can't be made habitable in the amount of time that the're talking about."
Irvine residents have called for a unified show of opposition to the plan at the next Supervisor's meeting on Tuesday.
Photo: Getty Images