A tent city near Grande Prairie’s city hall has been relocated to a nearby site with fences, 24-hour security and washrooms.
With assistance from the city, 72 people have moved to the new site, and have been assessed by housing and support agencies.
An original makeshift camp, about a block away, was set up by homeless people. The recent move was about making the site safe, and to provide services that could help the people find housing, said Grande Prairie Mayor Bill Given.
“City administration has worked together with a number of different community agencies to come up with a plan to mitigate the impacts on the general community,” Given said. “But also to do a better job of connecting the people who are staying in those encampments with the services that are available in our community.”
Cameron Murray, 53, helped start the makeshift camp three weeks ago with friends. He has lived in Grande Prairie for more than 20 years and has been homeless off and on for most of his life.
He’s happy the city got involved and added security instead of tearing the camp apart.
“[I] figured this would be a safer place for everybody, just not the guys in the tents but the community,” Murray said. “People can leave their tents up during the day and at night.”
Grande Prairie doesn’t have enough drop-in shelter space, overnight beds or affordable housing, Murray said.
He and and other campers were tired of setting up tents daily, he said, and having their belongings disappear.
Murray said there were a few confrontations between tent city occupants and other residents after the camp started, but he feels safe at the new location.
He’s on a fixed income through assistance, and said he hopes to find housing within the next month. He got involved with tent city to show officials how many people are homeless and need help.
“I’m not going to stop until there’s a day program and a night program,” Murray said. “So these guys have somewhere to go in the winter time.”
The Saint Lawrence Centre, which closed in the spring due to a lack of funding, has now temporarily reopened. The popular drop-in program is run out of Rotary House, Grande Prairie’s main shelter.
“That will be an interim accommodation,” Given said. “I think the longer term would be to establish an ongoing space that would allow that similar kind of programming to what St. Lawrence Centre offered in a dedicated space.”
The city will continue to provide assistance, and hopes to help residents find housing before winter arrives..
“At this stage we have planned for at least the next month,” Given said. “And we will reassess as we get closer to the end of that timeline.”