Province, support group race to find housing for homeless campers as park stay nears end

A group of homeless campers remain inside Goldstream Provincial Park with only a handful of service providers allowed in and out of the campground, as the Oct. 2 deadline for their removal nears.

An estimated 34 people set up tents on the site more than a week ago after many in the group were evicted from homeless encampments in Saanich, B.C. The park was closed by authorities on Sept. 19.

Pacifica Housing has been sending support workers into the site to assess the needs of the campers in order to find suitable housing for each one of them while providing harm reduction supplies and other necessities.

So far, Pacifica has housed as many as 14 people from the original group of campers who were evicted from Regina Park in Saanich, but executive director Dean Fortin said the lack of available units is their biggest challenge.

"The challenge is this problem's been building for the past 15-20 years. We need more than 15 or 20 days to get it done… It's really going to take the provincial government working with municipal government to step up," Fortin told Gregor Craigie, host of On The Island.

2-week deadline

B.C. Housing Minister Selina Robinson announced that the government plans to find shelter and housing placements for the homeless campers by Oct. 2, which is when their permitted two-week stay ends.

Langford Mayor Stewart Young has been in contact with Robinson but said she hasn't clearly communicated the province's plan.

"I'm really not part of any discussion or any of their planning," Young told the CBC's Liz McArthur.

"They're having meetings and we hear about it basically from the media and I want them to change that… at least we could be apprised of what's going on before it happens so I can be prepared with our resources and make sure that our community is notified as well."

Crime and vandalism concerns

Young attended a neighbourhood meeting this week and heard concerns from residents about vandalism and crime. He said there needs to be more people on the ground to provide support.

He said the sooner they can identify the appropriate services for the campers the sooner they can try to resolve the situation.

Pacifica is anticipating new modular housing stock from the province, and Fortin said the charity has plans for more than 400 new units for low-income families and individuals with disabilities underway.

"We're going to continue to do those works because we know when you get people into housing, that's where the strongest opportunity comes for them to succeed," Fortin said.

"No one's perfect but they are human, and with supports they can succeed."

With files from All Points West and On The Island

To hear the full interview with Dean Fortin of Pacifica Housing listen to media below:

To hear comments from Langford Mayor Stewart Young and B.C. Premier John Horgan, listen to media below:

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