SANTA CRUZ — Members of Occupy Santa Cruz continued to protest outside several national banks in the past week and camped in tents at San Lorenzo Park without receiving tickets from police for illegal camping.

Authorities said Friday that could change if the campers don’t accommodate other groups that want to use the park.

A new soccer league for disadvantaged youths wanted to play in the park Saturday but canceled because it did not want to deal with a potential clash with Occupy Santa Cruz demonstrators, Deputy Chief of Police Steve Clark said.

“I talked to Occupy members about campsites not encroaching that event, and this is going to cause us to re-evaluate our enforcement strategy,” Clark said. ”There hasn’t been a need for an enforcement posture but that’s always on the table.”

Clark said police and city leaders respected their right to protest, but not when it negatively impacts residents.

Steve Pleich, a member of Occupy’s legal strategy and defense working group, said some of the homeless who had been camping in San Lorenzo Park joined the group’s campsite for protection. Some of the homeless also joined the Occupy protest activities, Pleich said.

There are city laws against unlawful lodging and a separate camping ordinance, but officers have discretion on whether to enforce them, police said.

Citations start at $20, and court fees multiply them to $64 when a person pays the ticket, Clark said. A second offense

is $60 with court fees bringing the fine to $192.

Occupy members first put up tents in the park Oct. 6. They briefly moved to Mission Park and returned to San Lorenzo Park on Oct. 8.

Adjacent to the park on the side of the County Courthouse on Water Street, the group also set up tables, chairs and signs and held nightly meetings there.

Today, the group plans to demonstrate at the Steamer Lane lighthouse on West Cliff Drive with a ”human chain” to promote economic justice and corporate accountability, according to a statement.

The group is still drafting a mission statement, according to its website.

A statement this week said the group is ”committed to nonviolence” and supports the Occupy Wall Street protesters in New York that started in September.

The Santa Cruz group staged a walking demonstration Oct. 7 outside Bank of America and Wells Fargo branches on River Street and a Chase Bank branch on Ocean Street. A loud group of chanted outside the Wells Fargo branch and startled some customers when they pressed signs against the bank’s windows.

This week, members have been standing placidly outside Bank of America and Chase bank branches handing out fliers to encouraged people to close their accounts. Some at the protest said they thought the national banks could donate more money to community groups and give better lending terms.

Wells Fargo representatives have said the bank increased small business loans 13 percent in the first six months of 2011 compared with the same period in 2010. Bank of America representatives did not respond to requests for comment.

Pleich said residents’ support for the group has grown.

“We’ve had people come by from various social strata and express support,” Pleich said.

——

(c)2011 the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Scotts Valley, Calif.)

Visit the Santa Cruz Sentinel (Scotts Valley, Calif.) at www.santacruzsentinel.com