Edmonton removes 1,103 encampments as complaints jump by 61 per cent
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The City of Edmonton has removed 1,103 encampments amid rising complaints even as local shelters are near capacity despite the warm weather.
New data released publicly this week, and camp removal numbers shared with Postmedia, show the city has continued to struggle to help people experiencing homelessness. There were around 1,300 people living rough or staying in shelters on Homeward Trust’s by-name list as of June 23, and shelters are nearing capacity, city staff told city council this week.
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Complaints to 311 about homeless encampments are up 60 per cent from the same time last year to 5,090, with some calls about the same camps. The McCauley, Downtown and Boyle Street neighbourhoods are among the top five neighbourhoods for complaints.
While fewer people have been camping in parks than last year — down to 1,162 from 1,200 in June 2022 — slightly more people are sleeping in other places, data presented to council on Tuesday shows. In total, there were 369 encampments in June outside of parks compared to 340 a year ago — many of which are in the city’s core.
Jennifer Flaman, deputy city manager for community services, during an update to city council on transit and Downtown safety this week, said the many shelters reaching capacity is abnormal for this time of year. Even as teams try to help people find somewhere to go other than camping outdoors, Flaman said finding alternatives is difficult.
“This presents us with a significant challenge. We are enjoying summer weather now, we also know winter is around the corner,” she told council on Tuesday. “We are in a bit of a quandary about where people can go.”
Edmonton’s encampment teams also do not have enough resources to meet the growing need, Flaman said, although staff are more coordinated with outreach groups than in previous years.
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She said the majority of non-park camps around Downtown are putting pressure on the encampment response. The city’s response times have also been slower because of extreme weather — the city activated more extreme weather responses than usual on account of heat, poor air quality, and flooding, Flaman said.
“Resourcing has not kept pace with the rapid growth of encampments and is not equipped to handle the volume and complexity of needs,” she said.
On the other hand, Flaman said the pilot with Homeward Trust to rapidly house about 100 people is showing some promising signs. To date, 39 people have been connected with housing workers, 12 are in bridge housing, five are approved for permanent housing and awaiting placement, and two people are in permanent housing.
The city is currently in talks with the provincial government about emergency shelter funding for next winter and the hope is to have 1,200 beds available.
Calls to 311 about encampments have gone up by more than 1,000 per cent between 2016 and 2022, according to the city.
People struggling in west end: Knack
Coun. Andrew Knack said he’s hearing a lot more concerns after daytime services closed in the west end three weeks ago. Before it opened there were more complaints about the Jasper Place Transit Centre than before, but now it seems the issue has re-emerged.
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Knack said he’s getting complaints about encampments now from communities who haven’t experienced them at this magnitude before.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen it as bad in the west end, especially since the closure of those spaces. The last month has been really hard on a lot of folks, and a lot of folks struggling who would like support but frankly have nowhere to go,” Knack said during the meeting Tuesday.
“Outside of a small place operated by the Mustard Seed which can be shelter space for 20 people or so, there is nothing there anymore, so we see more folks out on the street.”
The councillor questioned whether increasing enforcement would solve the issue since there isn’t anywhere for people to go if they are moved.
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