Updated 12/07/2011 08:57 AM
Code enforcement inspects Occupy Albany camp
Officials inspect the Occupy Albany movement at Academy Park, but protesters will have to wait a day to find out if they'll be allowed to remain there. Innae Park reports.
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ALBANY, N.Y. – Occupy Albany was under the microscope Tuesday as fire and code enforcement officials inspected Academy Park.
Protester Daniel Robins led authorities on the tour and said, “I would be surprised if they were to find anything that would violate anything they asked us to do already.”
It was a seemingly smooth run through, but Occupiers won't know whether their encampment was compliant until Wednesday morning.
Robins said there was only one concern brought up during the walk-through.
"The absolute only point of contention right now was the shelves we have erected,” he said. “We have erected wooden shelves with wooden nails and we've moved them several times. They've pointed out that it could be considered a structure and there's no building of structures."
The inspection comes after the City of Albany threatened to evict the protest due to health and safety concerns. The movement is now living by the law in order to qualify for a permit to stay until December 22.
Among their changes: Cleaning up the park and keeping everything in order, new signs warning of the dangers of both drinking and smoking in the area, getting rid of propane and gasoline to meet the two heater quota and downsizing their tents, with less than 30 personal tents pitched.
Kysha Bailey was one of the many demonstrators who had to move her tent. She now shares it with two others.
“I know it [rooming] is not a problem to anyone else because people that come here, they're kind and nice and not starting trouble,” Bailey said.
However, she says their site has undergone quite a change.
“We now only have the information tent and the one storage tent where we had to knock down other people's tents and basically pile them up in there,” Bailey said. “So if they want to get their belongings, they have to go searching through things.”
“We have good spirits and high hopes and a really good message we're clinging to,” said Robins.
Fire and code enforcement officials are scheduled to meet with Occupy protestors Wednesday morning at 10:30, when they'll discuss whether to issue that permit valid until December 22. After that date, an attorney for Occupy Albany says they will be requesting an indefinite permit for demonstrators to stay there longer.