As Sarnia, Ont., park encampment grows, city's top cop won't enforce evictions without court order

Sarnia's police chief does not intend to enforce evictions to members of a growing tent community in a city park.

Derek Davis says officers will not physically remove homeless encampment residents from Rainbow Park or clear the area. It's aplace where nearby residents have voiced their concerns about the settlement.

"This position has been taken in consultation with legal counsel and is consistent with recent court decisions and police agencies in other jurisdictions," he said in a statement.

According to Davis, to date, there hasn't been a "blanket refusal" saying the police service needs to ensure it's in a lawful position to take any action and that it's being "objectively reasonable."

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Davissays there also hasn't been a request or direction from the city, and that pending those decisions the encampment continues to grow.

"We are unable to force Canadian citizens into shelters, addiction treatment, or any other specific destinations outside of voluntary agreement or lawful processes."

And even if requested, says Davis, the encampment residents' removal may only amount to relocating them to the nearest sidewalk.

Last fall, Sarnia city council nixed the idea of setting up a sanctioned homeless encampment.

Last week, council then decided to put on hold plans to clear out the camp with input from police.

There have been some incidents recently around encampments in Sarnia the past couple of weeks that came with police reports.

Hours after the council's decision last week, there was an attempted murder at the park where someone was stabbed in the neck, police say.The victim is expected to recover.

This week, officers arrested a business owner in a separate incident, in a different part of Sarnia. That was for allegedly shooting pellets from a "machine gun-style airsoft gun" in the direction of another small encampment behind their shop.

"I think they are isolated situations," said Myles Vanni, executive director of Sarnia's main shelter, Inn of the Good Shepherd.

"Of course, the neighbours have some real concerns. But that kind of reaction, I think, really is outside what the norm is in the community."

Vanni says the business owner's alleged reaction is "scary" and "definitely overboard."

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Over the past six months, he says the Rainbow Park encampment has seen quite an increase and that the community is concerned.

"The situation now [is] very hard to house a lot of people with deep addictions that make it difficult for us to house them, but it also makes it very difficult for us to shelter them."

He says there are lots of spaces available at his shelter but a lot of homeless people in the city don't want to come in as the weather has gotten nicer.

"They prefer to be outside. Those with deep addictions there are challenges because they want to but they can't use it in the shelter."

The main encampment in Rainbow Park is spread out along a fence line backing onto an industrial area with a gravel cement yard, says Vanni.

"It's not one big gathering. It's kind of, you know, a few tents, some space, a couple of tents, some space. So it's spread out a bit that way."

Vanni thinks the city and police are doing the best they can with what he calls a "difficult, complex situation."

"I think they made the right move not to close the encampment down, because literally, where will these folks go? We're in a society of choice. And people have the ability to choose."

Davis, the chief of police, says officers will continue to respond to "any calls" for service in and around the park and have dedicated patrol resources for the area.

"Often we are the agency of last resort, and understand the frustration of these circumstances being experienced in our community."