The lawyer representing ranch workers in the Point Reyes National Seashore will appeal a decision made in federal court last Friday denying a motion to intervene in the lawsuit that will reshape the park in coming months.
U.S. District Judge Maxine M. Chesney rejected the motion by workers seeking to remain in their homes, clearing the way for a settlement agreement reached last week. “I understand how workers feel. They would like the litigants to do something here,” she said. “But they are not required to.”
The settlement, reached between environmental groups, the National Park Service, ranchers and The Nature Conservancy, resolves a lawsuit filed three years ago with a buyout of ranch leases. The plaintiffs have asked to pause the litigation for two years rather than end it, while 12 ranches and dairies close down, a move that will displace roughly 90 farmworkers and tenants.
Attorney Andrew Giacomini vowed to challenge the decision in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. “We expected this decision, but the judge is wrong on the law,” he said.
The path forward remains uncertain, as the settlement is legally binding. Mr. Giacomini has a separate pending lawsuit against the park service, as he pursues every legal avenue to secure his clients’ right to remain in their homes.
To aid in residents’ transition out of the park, the Nature Conservancy announced a roughly $2.5 million fund to provide severance packages, housing assistance and support services for affected workers, who will have to leave within 15 months.
But residents say it’s not enough.
“The $2.5 million is partially allocated to social services, which dwindles down the amount, and then it’s split between however many people are on the ranches,” said Gabriel Romo, who grew up on the McClure Dairy and still resides there. “We’ll end up with an amount that’s hardly impactful. I think it’s contingent on us giving up the homes we’re in, and if that’s the case, I wouldn’t sign it myself.”
Mr. Giacomini has said that an outside donor has pledged an additional $2.5 million to support workers who instead choose to challenge the evictions, though doing so may mean forfeiting any assistance from the conservancy.
At a town hall on Saturday organized by Rep. Jared Huffman, people voiced alarm over the ripple effects on the economy and social fabric. Mr. Romo, a banker at Wells Fargo, stood with a handwritten sign that read, “I think the underlying factor is how hard our community will be affected. Businesses will lose employees; schools will lose students. But also, the community will face more gentrification and classism.”
His brother, Eduardo, held another: “Fund Local Low-Income Housing for Displaced Ranch Workers.”
But many of the Latino ranch residents were absent. Some were working or only learned about the event at the last minute, and their absence underscored years of marginalization.
Santiago Gomez was one of the residents not at the event. He lives with his parents and sister on the historic H Ranch, and he sees a disconnect between public statements and private reality.
“There’s a hypocrisy between what people say and what we, my family and other families, experience,” he said. “People say they want to help. But, in reality, nobody is there to help us. We just have to learn how to adapt.”
Born in Jalisco, Mr. Gomez moved to Point Reyes when he was 3. He works as the assistant manager of the West Marin Community Services Resource Center, while he and his parents run a housecleaning and landscaping business.