Local car camper confronts council over housing issue

Setting up camp at the Four-way…

[  By Mark Reaman  ]

Tensions got spicy at the Monday, June 6 Crested Butte town council meeting when a valley resident who currently lives in his car expressed obvious frustration and anger at the housing situation in town. 

Adam Maestle spoke by Zoom during the public comment section of the meeting. “I want to ask why being homeless in this town is basically criminalized?” he said. “Council again refuses to make the hard decisions and do their jobs. Why? What can’t people legally sleep in their cars in town? This council declared the housing situation as a housing emergency a year ago so why do the cops harass people sleeping in their cars in town? That’s what I want to know.”

As is typical council procedure, the council took the public comments and thanked Maestle for making them but did not respond directly to questions or issues brought in public comment during public comment period.

But Maestle, who said he has worked in Crested Butte the last six years but just quit his jobs because of the housing squeeze, showed up at the end of the meeting an hour later and councilwoman Mallika Magner asked community development director Troy Russ what the town’s policy on car camping was at the moment.

“Currently no overnight parking is allowed on public property in town,” he said. “We allow people to camp on private property in town with permission. Only one individual has brought up the issue to town staff and asked about being able to car camp on public parking. We haven’t heard the demand so while we have considered it there are significant costs and health issues associated with allowing that. Right now we haven’t heard the demand.”

“So can people camp in their cars in town?” asked Magner.

“They can live in their car in town for 14 days is my understanding,” said Russ who on Tuesday said he misspoke and provided the town ordinance. That ordinance allows camping for special events but does not specifically address car camping.

Town attorney Barbara Green said, “The Town code does not define camping. Camping is only allowed in certain places and times for 14 days. But sleeping in a car is not actually specified as camping.”

Chief marshal Mike Reily said the town regulations do indeed prohibit camping on the town’s public property. But the marshal’s department generally tries to work with those who are found camping in such situations. Overall, Reily said most people understand the situation and move on to other options. 

“First, we provide a warning and, more importantly, information on the law and a camper’s options. In that informational process we explain there is an RV campground in Riverland, tent camping north of Mt. Crested Butte, an option to get permitted camping on private property in Town and a plethora of recreational camping options in the National Forest and BLM surrounding Crested Butte,” Reily explained on Tuesday. “Our usual second step is to cite habitual or willful violators of an ordinance. It is possible to write citations for each daily occurrence of an ordinance violation, but it is rare for a camping contact to get to this level of enforcement. Repeat offenders tend to get the hint after receiving several citations. Actual physical arrest for a camping offense has not occurred in our collective memory. Arrest is generally saved for willful, repeat or egregious offenders, offenses where physical harm has occurred or arrest is mandated by law. Nearly all camping contacts stop at step one.”

Reily said that like in any case where someone deliberately chooses to not abide by the town regulations, the marshals will ask them to follow the rules and if they refuse, they could issue tickets and that would result in a court appearance.

“I was expecting a response to my questions earlier and since no one responded I drove up here,” said an angry Maestle. “Just so you know, I’m camping at the Four-way tonight. If someone wants to arrest me, come and do it. I have an attorney already lined up.”

“Just by way of explanation, we don’t respond immediately to public comment right away but do so later in the meeting,” said councilmember Jason MacMillan. 

“It’s not my first time at your council meeting,” said Maestle. 

“So you know the process,” replied MacMillan.

“You’re criminalizing the victims of the emergency,” responded Maestle. “Why is sleeping in a car criminalized in Crested Butte? I am tired of coming in here every summer and asking the same questions.”

MacMillan asked Russ to definitely talk to chief marshal Mike Reily about how the marshal’s department handles such situations. “We should all be on the same page with the same facts over this,” he said.

“I’ll be at the next meeting along with an attorney,” said Maestle. “I wanted someone here to have the balls to arrest me but no one has the balls to do it. I’ve been here 10 years and am not going away. I’ll be at the Four-way tonight and some of my friends will be joining me too (in the future). F*cking traitors,” he said to the council as he exited the council chambers.

Reily emphasized that there have not been many confrontations with people trying to camp in town and “arrests for a camping offense has not occurred in our collective memory.”