People living in five homeless encampments in the Halifax area have been told to vacate the sites by today, after the municipality removed special designations that allowed tents to be set up in those locations.
The city had asked earlier this month that unhoused people staying in tents at five of 11 authorized encampments leave by Feb. 26. Residents were told they could be fined or even arrested if they don’t comply.
It said the encampments, including one at Grand Parade, pose a safety risk and that better options are available.
On Friday, the city said 25 of the approximately 55 people staying at the five encampments had accepted indoor shelter.
Service providers were discussing “appropriate indoor sheltering” with those who remain, the municipality said, but some unhoused people have previously indicated they won’t leave by the deadline.
About 40 people gathered at Grand Parade on Monday morning to show their support for residents still living in that encampment.
A man who identified himself to Radio-Canada only as John Doe said he’s been at the site since mid-January and he’s frustrated by the current situation.
“It’s hard to say what’s going to happen. I hope nothing, because, yeah, OK, we would prefer to be in homes, but we don’t have a choice right now,” he said early Monday.
He said he’d like the city to leave the Grand Parade encampment alone, as there’s a sense of community, it’s close to amenities and other locations and shelters aren’t suitable for some residents there.
“We might be homeless, but we’re still human,” he said.
A resident of the Victoria Park encampment, who identified himself only as Jay, said he’s been homeless since last April.
He said he’s feeling stressed out but he’s also relieved that work is being done to help people who are living in tents.
“For the community, I can see a lot of issues involved with the encampments. I think that the city is trying — there is adequate shelters in place — but in the same breath, there’s a lot of issues,” he said.
He said he’s hopeful that closing the five encampments will shed light on the homelessness situation, and will show that there needs to be more affordable housing and more support for mental health and addictions.
He said he’s planning to stay in a tent in another encampment, rather than going to a shelter.
In October, the Halifax Regional Municipality designated 11 sites around the city as tenting areas for people without housing as a stop-gap measure until better indoor options became available.
The other locations expected to close Monday are the Geary Street green space in Dartmouth, at Saunders Park and at the ballfield on Cobequid Road in Lower Sackville.
