The City of Vancouver says it will shut down the municipality’s only sanctioned homeless encampment by early next month.
The Vancouver Park Board said Wednesday that it has set Nov. 7 as the deadline to end sheltering in a special “designated area” in CRAB Park.
The designated area has been in place since 2022, and was implemented after the city lost a court battle with residents of a homeless encampment in the park. Earlier this year, the city conducted a massive cleanup at the site and limited the use of the site for shelter to existing residents on a registered list.
The city said those people have since been offered housing, and that it is moving to return the space to park use.
“Given these individuals have received shelter and housing offers, there is no longer a fair and reasonable rationale for these individuals to have priority and exclusive access to daytime public park space given the other over 600 people experiencing unsheltered homelessness across the city who are required to comply with the Parks Control By-Law,” the park board said in a media release.
“The Park Board and City are committed to supporting each person in the designated area throughout this closure and are identifying through consultation with them the supports they may need.”
Jeremy Omand with the Gastown Residents’ Association welcomed the move.
“Three and a half years of people living in tents in our park, it’s enough. We’re happy to see it go. Everyone has a right to housing, but everyone doesn’t have a right to housing wherever they please,” he said.
“There is housing available for these folks, it’s their choice whether they take it or not, but they can’t choose to pitch up a tent in our park because this is where they want to live, that’s how I feel.”
But Kerry Bamberg, who has lived intermittently at the encampment since it began in 2021, said the offers of housing from the city and province haven’t been suitable.
She currently lives with her long-term partner, but said none of the offers so far would allow them to stay together.
“They to this date say there really isn’t anything for couples. We’ve tried shelters, they don’t work for us. There’s violence, there’s drugs … and they always try and split us up,” she said.
“I am not going to live without my partner of 20 years. I’m just not. What are we supposed to do?”
The park board said just seven people remain in the designated shelter area of the park, five of whom have declined housing and one of whom has turned down three offers.
It said the city is working directly with the people who remain in the encampment, along with BC Housing to try and address shelter options.
Anyone who turns down those offers can legally still shelter in CRAB Park, or any other Vancouver park, under the city’s sheltering bylaw, which requires tents or structures to be taken down each morning.