City tackles homeless camps with quicker cleanups and more supports

From data collection, to quick cleanups, to supports for mental health and addiction, Calgary wants to get on top of the homeless camps that some say are becoming a bigger problem.

The Joint Encampment Team is a one-year pilot project that brings together social services and city resources to try to deal with the myriad issues raised by the camps.

• Homeless encampments overwhelm Calgary's PAL response team

"I don't think we're going to live in a world where we completely eliminate encampments, but we're going to be able to help a lot more people and clean up a lot more parkland more quickly now," said Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra, speaking at a community meeting on the project on Thursday.

No protocol

He said there isnocitywide protocol for dealing with camps. Each city department deals with them in its own way and a different person in charge depending on whether the camp was on property governed by parks, roads or corporate properties, the Ward 9 representative said.

Carra said information gathering will help them better understand the scope of the issue and to figure out what resources are needed.

• Homeless camp patrol searches city's secret spots to offer support

Nicole Schonlives in Ramsay and says the encampments are a concern.

"I guess, ultimately, we understand as community members that these are human beings on the other endthat, for whatever reason whether it be mental health issues or the economic downturn or drug addiction that they're in these positions. But it's actually become a safety issue for the residents as well," she said.

She points to needles on the ground, fires lit on bluffs adjacent to homes and thefts.

Hope and frustration

Brian Pinney lives near the river in Inglewood and was at the community meeting to learn more about the program. He says it's early days but that he's encouraged.

"I think this program is capturing the information and I think that they'll hopefully assess whether they need more resources and whether there's more social programs that need to be put in place in order to help these people," he said.

• Inglewood residents raid homeless camp to steal back allegedly stolen goods

Carra said he thinks the communities that have been dealing with more encampments will welcome the new initiative.

"I think there ishope from the community that we're finally on the right path. And I think there's a lot of pent-up frustration because this is an issue that the river communities ofWard 9 have been experiencing in a pretty full-throttle way for the last couple of years," he said.

The program will be re-evaluated at the end of the year.

• MORE CALGARY NEWS |Roll call triggers angry words, frustration at city council
• MORE CALGARY NEWS |Missed patches of gravel irk some Calgarians as street sweepers dodge illegally parked vehicles