By Chuck Chiang
The park board says it is speaking directly with each of the seven people still in the camp located in the designated Crab Park area, with the goal of closing the encampment and returning the area to “general use of the park” by November 7.
In a press release, the park’s board of directors indicates that the seven people present on site had been offered accommodation previously, but had declined these offers, and five of them had been offered accommodation, one person in particular having already rejected three of these offers.
The statement said “continued non-compliance” at the encampment remains a health and safety risk, as well as an “unsustainable” strain on the park board’s resources, and concern is growing winter is approaching.
The Crab Park encampment began in 2021 and remained in place into 2022 when a BC Supreme Court judge overturned the eviction notices in part because the city did not have enough space indoor accommodation to accommodate people living in the camp.
In a written response, activists describe the park board’s latest decision as an “eviction” and criticize the city’s response to the camp and its residents, including what they describe as an “insensitive response” during the rains torrential last weekend, when residents were not allowed in. erect additional tarpaulins.
Activists also criticized the city’s decision to end the camps outside of court, where an “equal platform for a coherent decision” could be found.
“The Federal Housing Advocate’s review of encampments and the National Encampment Protocol both highlight the need for meaningful engagement and effective participation, to recognize residents as rights holders and prohibit forced evictions” , indicates the press release.
The park board states that it is “committed to supporting every person in the designated area throughout this closure,” and anyone still at Crab Park after the camp’s closure date would still be allowed “to take temporary shelter overnight, in accordance with regulations.”
The board of directors states that the regulation “allows shelter during the night, the structures being dismantled in the morning.”
“Given that these people have received offers of accommodation and lodging, there is no longer a fair and reasonable justification for these people to have priority and exclusive access to public daytime spaces, given that more than Another 600 homeless people across the city are required to do so. comply with the park control regulations,” the park board’s statement said in an explanation of the situation.
The council says the park serves around 6,000 people within a 10-minute walk, an area with very little other green space nearby.
The city had already forced people to leave the encampment in March to clean up the sites, and residents were allowed to return to the designated Crab Park area in April.
The cleanup team removed more than 90,000 kilograms of debris and materials, 20 propane tanks and six generators during the operation.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published October 23, 2024.
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British Columbia Homeless at Crab Park Regional The Canadian Press Vancouver
Last modification: October 24, 2024