Homeless Engineer Says He Was Discriminated Against by Cruzio Works

A homeless graphic designer said he was unfairly not allowed to work at Cruzio.com, one of two shared work place centers in Santa Cruz. 

Daniel Madison, 53, said he was asked to leave Cruzio because he made someone there uncomfortable. He said it related to a nighttime meeting with his autistic son in the parking lot. Madison said he was a successful designer of 3-D graphics for the likes of Caesar's Palace casino, before he lost work and lost a place to live.

Cruzio's Business Development manager said that the company doesn't discriminate and has members who do not have a permanent address. 

"However, since coworking requires a mutual trust among all members, especially after hours when Cruzio staff is not always at hand, we must be strict about our membership rules," said James Hackett, in an email.  

He added: 

"We are disappointed that we seem to have become the object of an unwarranted attack. We don't believe the group attacking us accurately represent the views of the majority of the Santa Cruz homeless community. Their rush to judgment is harming a company which has always been an ally."

Protesters stood outside the Cruzio home, the old Sentinel building, lead by professional protester Robert Norse (the man who gave the Nazi salute before the Santa Cruz City Council and was rebuffed in federal court). In a petition they asked that Madison be allowed to use Cruzio and the company make an apology to him.

Madison said he didn't know why he appeared threatening to the person who complained to Cruzio staff. Hackett said he couldn't comment on the specifics of the case because legal action was threatened. He said the company "bent over backwards to find a solution."

Cruzio charges $89 a month for a 9-5 Member; $159 a month for a 24/7 member and $369 a month for a private cubical.