Strathcona Park tent city too big, says area resident
Outreach team offering support, services to homeless who have set up camp there
The city should remove or at least limit the number of campers who have set up tents in Strathcona Park, says a homeowner in the neighbourhood.
Sean Carvajal said he is concerned about the growing number of tents at the park, which he estimates has grown from 40 or 50 three weeks ago to more than 130 this week.
“There is a lot of garbage and what is, for lack of another word, detritus over the site,” he said.
Carvajal, who used to use the park to play Frisbee and croquet, said he doesn’t feel safe using the parts of the 10-hectare park that remain unoccupied because “it’s a potentially dangerous place to be because there’s no social distancing happening.”
Carvajal said he accepts that he may be more prone to crime by living in the neighbourhood because of its proximity to the Downtown Eastside.
His home has been broken into twice over the past four years. But he is now more concerned about his safety, considering there was a murder at a similar tent city at Oppenheimer Park on Jan. 1, and police seized weapons from there before the campers were removed in April.
“Strathcona (Park) is four times the size of Oppenheimer,” he said. And he’s worried about the camp growing too large for the city or police to maintain order or limit the number of campers.
The tent city started to grow days after police with a court order forced about 100 campers out of CRAB Park in mid-June. CRAB Park became occupied after a larger tent city at Oppenheimer Park, that had been there for more than a year, was ordered shut down in April because of health concerns and fears over the transmission of COVID-19.
City of Vancouver spokeswoman Ellie Lambert said it’s a priority to find indoor housing for the homeless and the city works with B.C. Housing and the federal government on funding. In an email, Lambert said the city is looking at “temporary measures and more longer term options such as the expedited creation of more supportive housing” with critical funding from senior governments.
In the meantime, the city’s fire department is addressing the safety risks and the city’s homeless outreach team is patrolling the park to offer supports and services, she said.
Rangers visit the park and senior staff are monitoring residents daily. The city has installed six portable toilets, a handwashing station and water fountain, and are cleaning the public washrooms and collecting garbage more regularly.
The number of calls to Vancouver police more than doubled for Strathcona Park in June compared with June 2019, to 33 from 15, spokesman Sgt. Aaron Roed said in an email. “It’s unfortunate that some people have been made to feel unsafe in this neighbourhood. The VPD will continue to maintain a visible presence in and around Strathcona Park.”
“The park board has exclusive jurisdiction of the park and there is a bylaw that precludes overnight camping in the park,” said Lambert. “The current bylaw is not being enforced, as it requires a revision to bring it up to the current legal precedent, which allows sheltering overnight in park(s) when no other housing alternatives are available.”
Carvajal said he has sympathy for the homeless and suggested the city permit a limited number of campers in several parks across the city while they await shelter.