Embarcadero Center Threatened to Sue City Over Occupy Encampment

The Hyatt Regency and Vitale hotels complained of foul camp conditions, “sexual harassment,” and an employee getting coffee thrown on him by Occupiers

The 99 percent might wage war with drum circles, slogans, and tent cities, but the 1 percent will fight back — in court. Among the many pressures Mayor Ed Lee faced when trying to evict the Occupy SF camp from Justin Herman Plaza were threats of getting sued by the owners of Embarcadero Center and heated complaints from nearby hotels, according to letters turned over by the mayor’s office to SF Weekly.

The Embarcadero Center threatened to sue the city in three letters in November for allowing Occupiers to camp out in tents, vandalize its property, and present “disastrous” conditions for its Christmas lights ceremony and ice show. As of Friday, Matt Dorsey, spokesman for the City Attorney’s Office, said that the Embarcadero Center had not made good on its threat to file a claim against the city. The center’s attorney hasn’t returned our messages.

Additionally, a representative of the Hyatt Regency wrote to Supervisor Sean Elsbernd, saying that Occupy had been “hijacked by vagrants and delinquents who are seriously impacting my business and this neighborhood.” The luxury Hotel Vitale at 8 Mission Street also wrote Mayor Lee, outlining episodes of alleged harassment endured by employees, including one who claims coffee was thrown on him and another being cat-called by Occupiers as she left work.

But none pulled out the legal threats like Boston Properties, the owner of Embarcadero Center. A November 7 letter by the landlord’s attorney Marshall Wallace threatens to sue the city for damages and injunctive relief for failing to enforce city codes at Justin Herman Plaza, part of which Embarcadero Center maintains.

The letter stated that two tenants had ended lease negotiations with the property in the previous week, and one of the sponsors of the holiday ice rink at Justin Herman Plaza withdrew its sponsorship because of the camp. Additionally, it alleged that Occupiers had stolen from patrons, peed on and vandalized its property, destroyed paper towel dispensers and left syringes in the bathrooms.