Homeless camp under Gardiner demolished
Official says staff will help residents find space in shelters
One of several makeshift camps in downtown Toronto was demolished Wednesday morning as city staff acted on eviction notices sent to homeless residents currently living under the Gardiner Expressway.
Traffic slowed on Lake Shore Blvd. W. as a loader and city truck cleared debris from the encampment.
There was no sign of the camp’s occupants as the dismantling happened, but a handful of city workers could be seen sorting through various items in the homeless camp, including several bikes, blankets, plastic boxes, mats and small bags. Brad Ross, the city’s chief communications officer, said the operation was a followup to eviction notices sent to occupants in January.
The camp on Lakeshore Blvd. W., just west of Lower Simcoe St., was the only one targeted Wednesday, but city staff will continue to help the camp’s residents find space in the city’s shelter system, he said. “We recognize that not all individuals are prepared to come inside, to engage with us,” he said.
“But we continue to work with them to provide whatever supports they may need.” Some 20 metres away from the demolition scene, Dexter Wolfgang busily packed his belongings, mildly unfazed by what was happening nearby.
“You have to be ready to move, anytime,” he said, noting his stuff is always packed and ready to be pulled away with his quad bicycle.
“I will move to another spot somewhere, and I will probably be back here again.” A notice of eviction he received Wednesday morning indicated he must remove materials and debris stored on the public’s right of way, and “failure to comply will result in removal by city forces.”
“What they’re doing is stupid,” he said, noting he has been homeless since 2003, moving around the city with his stuff.
By noon, the camp had been cleared and city workers had departed, and Wolfgang’s site had been spared.
The area beneath the elevated stretch of the Gardiner between Bathurst and Lower Simcoe Sts. has been home to several makeshift homeless camps this winter. Besides a handful of camps still standing, debris is strewn all over the place — pieces of clothing, plas- tic bags, broken bike parts and bottles among other things.
The city has several concerns over public and individual safe- ty in the camps, Ross said, pointing to reports of a fire at one of the camps over the weekend.
“It’s a fine balance,” he said. “We can’t force anybody to come inside. But at the same time we need to make sure pub- lic and personal safety is maintained at all times.”
In January, city staff backed away from a plan to evict residents of the camps, saying residents who pack up would find space in city shelters.
Earlier that month, several people who set up tents or makeshift structures, including some under the Gardiner, were handed notices informing them they had 14 days to leave or face “further enforcement,” prompting fears that sweeping evictions were coming.
The city said that was not the case and the notices are handed out to let people know they are violating city rules and their possessions could be moved. With several shelters at capacity this winter, residents said they had nowhere else to go.
“It’s a Catch-22,” said Richard Smith, who has lived under the Gardiner near Spadina Ave. on and off for about two years.