Mesa police dismantle hideaway for homeless
Orchard sheltered indigents for 20 years
Senta Scarborough The Arizona Republic Oct. 20, 2007 12:00 AM
A longtime haven for a group of homeless people hidden in an 11-acre Mesa orange grove is being uprooted by police. Residents of the "groves," a homeless camp nestled in a private orchard near Val Vista Drive and Main Street, were notified this week that they must move on by Saturday or be cited for trespassing. The camp, flanked by a community of single-family homes and a trailer park along a canal, has provided a shelter for the homeless for nearly 20 years. Few people knew it existed. An estimated 10 to 15 people, mostly men, were living in the groves when police moved in this week. Four of the six homeless people contacted by police had outstanding warrants, including trespassing, shoplifting and sexual assault. They ranged in ages from 18 to 80. Saturday, Mesa police and other city employees will clean up the piles of trash strewn across the jungle-like orchard. Police noticed a few weeks ago that the camp had become a "little out of control" with trash and contacted the out-of-state owner, Officer John Fitzgerald said. "The main goal is to help them get housing and clean up out here," he said, adding that police handed out fliers with information on local homeless shelters. The 90-year-old woman who has owned the property for 35 years gave police permission to cite the homeless residents for trespassing and to clean up the property. The city will attempt to recoup the costs of the cleanup. Dirt trails from the canal into the orchard led to shopping carts full of trash and rotten food, piles of debris and make-shift homes under the shade of a canopy of orange trees. The camp includes a tree house made from a commercial sign, a shower stall made from blue tarps and a bar of soap on a crate, and a toilet pieced together from a Homer's All Purpose bucket with a toilet seat on top. Police said property that included bike parts, DVDs, beer bottles and computer parts could be from shoplifting, burglary or beer runs. "It's hard to tell how much is from dumpster diving or how much of it is stolen," Fitzgerald said. Pam Chiesa, 63, a retired AT&T supervisor who has lived near the orchard for 10 years, said she has never had a problem with the people who live there, though police said they have received complaints. "I think they're (the police) being really unfair to these people," Chiesa said. "Where are they going to go?" The land's caretaker has been aware of the camp for years, but had an understanding that he'd leave them alone if they kept the area relatively clean. In the past, Mesa police haven't removed the homeless people and often contact them only if they were looking to solve a crime. "Whenever someone comes in here, I say, 'Be quiet, don't bother nobody, and stay in the middle,' " said a man who identified himself as David in an August interview with The Republic. "It's out of downtown, and if you don't make any noise, you get left alone." Program Manager Connie Hallett of the East Valley Men's Center, a homeless shelter in Mesa, said she noticed an increase this week in men seeking shelter but isn't sure if it's related to the police action in the groves. The 84-bed shelter serves the East Valley and has been full for the past 18 months, Hallett said. She said the homeless often include people who prefer that lifestyle, who have lost a job or have substance-abuse
