On Monday night at a special meeting, Town Council approved an urgency ordinance that temporarily blocks US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement from locating detention centers in Los Gatos.
Countering his critics, Mayor Rob Moore—up for reelection the next day—said he doesn’t think the move was just a symbolic gesture.
“The City of San Jose and the County have prohibited ICE detention facilities, and so has Gilroy,” he said. “Very quickly, there will be very limited land in our county where a detention center could go…It’s important to recognize that for this DHS, money is no object.”
A representative for Congressman Sam Liccardo asked the Town Council to approve the urgency ordinance, which required four votes to pass.
(Drew Penner / Los Gatan)
Sue Ann Lorig, a Los Gatos resident who shares information about due process rights with local businesses, said she appreciates that Council was taking up the issue.
“I urge you to please vote unanimously to approve the moratorium tonight, so that Los Gatos can join the other jurisdictions that have already taken action,” she said. “Your leadership will also encourage other cities and counties to follow.”
On July 2, a chain retail shop downtown was visited by a man in uniform who claimed he was an ICE agent, Lorig said, adding staff there asked if he could return the next day to speak with a manager.
“He never came back, but he really scared a worker who has been a naturalized citizen for over 20 years,” she said. “She couldn’t come to work for a few days, as the incident really shook her up.”
The owner of a “trendy local restaurant” reported two of his employees skipped a day of work because of reports of ICE traffic stops on their routes to work, per Lorig.
The vote was 4-1 in favor of the emergency measure, with Mary Badame, also up for reelection, abstaining.
As soon as the meeting ended, Badame and her partner made a beeline for the exit and refused to comment on the issue or her abstention.
In a statement released Tuesday, Liccardo cheered Council for taking action.
“Local leaders in Los Gatos have demonstrated how using local land use tools effectively can protect their communities from the disruption of reckless and lawless federal actors,” he said in a release. “By taking this step now, these jurisdictions can protect the health and safety of their residents and restrict potential actions by DHS to convert vacant buildings into ICE detention or processing centers. I commend Mayor Rob Moore and the Los Gatos Town Council for joining this growing effort in our region by using their local authority to stand up against allowing ICE infrastructure into our backyards.”
