SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Sacramento Superior Court judge granted the city an injunction against the owners of the Evergreen Shopping Center in South Sacramento due to the high number of police responding to reports of dangerous and illegal activity.
City officials said the property generated more than 2,250 calls for police, which is disproportionately higher than similar complexes in the area since Lotus Investment Partners bought the Evergreen Shopping Center.
The injunction allows the City of Sacramento to seek penalties and closure of the shopping center if drug or gang activity continues on the property.
Sacramento Councilmember Larry Carr thanked the judge in a news release for the injunction against the shopping center's owner, saying it will force them to take action.
“My office, along with the City Attorney’s Office, the Sacramento Police Department, and the Mack Road Property and Business Improvement District, have been fighting for years to make this site safer for neighbors and patrons,” Carr said.
Sacramento Police Department in 2018 released a report that gave guidance to property owners on how to prevent crime like improving lighting, security, post signage, and add surveillance on site. The city's lawsuit seeks to have the police department's recommendations implemented.
City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood said in a news release Sacramento will continue with its lawsuit against the owners until changes are made.
“The property owners and managers’ operation of the Evergreen Shopping Center is a public nuisance that threatens the public’s health, safety, and welfare," Wood said.
According to California law, the city's attorney's office could bring civil action against property owners to decrease crime.