One of the many homeless encampments along the Bow River near Sunnyside is pictured on April 27, 2022. Gavin Young/Postmedia

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The number of homeless encampments is growing and spreading across Calgary as city officials say they are stepping up efforts to address them.

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And those helping the homeless say they worry Calgary’s economic recovery may be swelling the ranks of homeless people drawn to the city in hopes of finding work. A two-person response team has been added to two existing ones that work with members of Alpha House’s DOAP Team to monitor and assist homeless people living on the street and in a growing number of encampments, a regulation official said. “We’re definitely seeing an increase in camping, especially along the river banks,” said Damian Cole, inspector of regulation services. “We’ve had a steady increase in them over the last four or five years.” Community complaints of social disturbance ranging from homelessness to drug dealing have led the city to remove foliage around the Lions Park and Banff Trail LRT stations in the northwest to reduce cover for illegal activity.

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“In Lions Park, people were actually setting up tents and leaving drug paraphernalia behind and chasing people,” said Ward 7 Coun. Terry Wong. “I have a few other communities asking, ‘Can we do this too?’ They have also discouraged homeless people and drug dealers from congregating on the LRT infrastructure, but some locations, such as the Tuscany LRT station, away from the city’s core, have more recently attracted some of those people, anti-LRT advocates said. of poverty and Cole. “Some of the (homeless) feel it’s safer because it’s farther from the city center,” said Philippe Reiche, a spokesman for the Calgary Homeless Foundation. Cole said some may view areas away from downtown and homeless shelters as safer because of concerns about COVID-19 in closer areas.

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“It’s another reason why we’ve expanded our work, because before, it was more localized in the city center.” The main focus of the DOAP team is to encourage those in encampments to move into shelters, he said, where there is also a greater chance of them heading to more permanent housing. “If they refuse, we ask them to move on, especially if they’re in a park area,” Cole said. But he admitted they sometimes face resistance from those living outside who fear for their safety inside the shelters. The same concerns were voiced repeatedly last winter by residents of a tent village outside the East Village Calgary Drop-In Center that was cleared by authorities last February due to rampant criminal activity.

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“Obviously we’re working closely with the shelters and they’re doing everything they can to make them safe, but there’s fear,” he said. But he said efforts to reduce outdoor camping haven’t stepped up to present a more sanitized impression of Calgary to summer and Stampede visitors. The number of homeless people in Calgary has been declining in recent years, from just under 3,000 in 2018 to just under 2,000 in 2021, the last time a count was taken, say officials with the Calgary Homeless Foundation. But Cole said they suspect those numbers could rise again as an improving economy attracts people without the means to support themselves, particularly in a city with rising rental costs.

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“We’re going to see people come to Calgary looking for that job and for a short period of time they can’t find that place to live,” he said. And in many cases, the personal problems facing members of this community are more serious, often struggling with mental, physical and addiction challenges, said Homeless Foundation President Patricia Jones. One of the many homeless encampments along the Bow River near Sunnyside is pictured on April 27, 2022. Gavin Young/Postmedia “We’re dealing with people who are more difficult to treat, and we have to work together on a collective response, which has been amazing,” Jones said. “People who are experiencing homelessness and fear they will end up in shelters are also being victimized by criminals.” Social agencies that include 30 outreach groups are trying to find solutions for 85 homeless people age 65 and older, he added.

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“You can imagine the physical challenges,” Jones said. Efforts by the city and non-governmental agencies to get people off the streets and into housing, he said, are not taking a break this summer. “We will not wait for a winter answer. That’s what we’re doing right now,” Jones said. But Wong said it’s not always the job of city officials to force encampment residents to move. “In the summer, many of the vulnerable population quite enjoy being outdoors and just want to be left alone,” he said. “Unless they’re causing a public problem, it’s not our place to remove them.” [email protected] Twitter: @BillKaufmannjrn

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