Report shows limits on enforcement for Columbia River encampment

No lid on encampment

Photo: File

Columbia River in Trail near Gyro Park.

The options are limited for jurisdiction, enforcement and inter-agency protocols to help the City of Trail and its residents deal with unauthorized encampments on Crown land along the Columbia River within municipal boundaries.

Seamus Wolfe, chief of staff for the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship (WLRS) wrote to the city in response to concerns raised late last year by Trail residents regarding the encampments.

Based on that writing, a September motion from council directed city staff to prepare a report clarifying the jurisdiction and authority of the city’s bylaw service in relation to unauthorized encampments, and the current or planned collaboration between the city and the Ministry of Forests or any other provincial agencies concerning such encampments.

The letters from the Ministry of Forests and WLRS were not favourable, noted city acting chief administrative officer Tracey Butler in a report to council.

“Based on the responses that we received from both of those entities, it does not appear there will be any collaboration in regards to encampments or otherwise within Crown land,” said Butler.

Trail currently has two locations where encampments have been established and where removal has not been enforced. One site is between the Gyro Park boat launch and the Victoria Street bridge, and the other is along the riverbank below the Shelter.

Bylaw enforcement monitors both areas regularly, and the occupants have consistently cooperated with requests to clean and maintain the sites, noted Butler.

“Because these locations are not heavily used by the public, the city has not required the camps to be dismantled at this time,” said Butler.

But the City of Trail bylaws would take precedence within those areas and it is for the municipality to manage, added in acting parks and recreation manager David Moorhead. In regards to any limitations or responsibility or enforcement considerations that residents should be aware of when they're reporting these issues to the city, people need to know the rights of those they are reporting on, he pointed out.

“But it is important to remember that housing is a human right protected under international law,” Moorhead explained. “And such, there are certain steps that need to be taken when looking to enforce or deal with encampments within Crown land or on any public lands. And that if there are no adequate housing for the individuals to be moved to, we cannot forcibly remove the camps.”

The city’s bylaw enforcement has been dealing with garbage as it comes up and trying to ensure that the areas look as clean as possible, as well as working with those individuals that are there to try and connect them with services that could further to get them into housing, to shelter, he continued.

“And further, if those camps do become abandoned as we are monitoring them, then we can move to remove those camps if nobody is attending those sites,” he said.

And that can be done by City of Trail bylaw enforcement, or if they do not have the time due to other restraints through their normal day-to-day operations, or it is an area that is complicated or may require a lot of time, the city does employ third-party contractors that can assist in that removal.

“And so those Crown land areas are just essentially going to be dealt with in the same way that we manage other encampments throughout the city. So for residents, if they are notifying staff, we will take the same steps that we do through those other encampments,” Moorhead said.

Most on city council were not surprised by the response from the province, and a suggestion was made to perhaps increase the number of bylaw officers available to accommodate the extra work of clean-up and security on the sites.

“We have added a line item within the city’s budget to deal strictly with the third party cleanup of encampments,” said Moorhead. “It's a start to understand the costs associated with the issue and we can start figuring out what that means.”

Coun. Terry Martin did not believe it was the city bylaw enforcement’s physical responsibility to remove the encampments.

“But I am encouraged and happy to see we have a third party contractor hired and I like that practice. I support it 100 per cent,” he said.

As a result of the discussion, city staff are expected to develop communications guided by best practices to “ensure homelessness is addressed in ways that avoid stigma and promote respectful, evidence-based public understanding.”

Collaboration will continue between B.C. Housing, Interior Health, Trail Association for Community Living, TCAT, ANKORS and other stakeholders in efforts to address the complex issue of homelessness, the report noted.

Encampment report

The City of Trail follows a human rights-based approach when responding to encampments.

Maintaining open, respectful communication with people experiencing homelessness has been the most effective way to encourage voluntary removal of tents from parks and public spaces, and facilitate encampment management and clean up.

Fostering stable, accountable relationships and maintaining regular engagement with vulnerable community members has greatly improved compliance and helped create a safer environment for everyone involved.

Relocation actions related to those living in encampments must be balanced with the availability of appropriate shelter or housing options, and the city must ensure that any response aligns with these legal obligations.

With this in mind, the city has been enforcing removal of tents from public spaces during the day. People may erect shelters and sleep in public spaces and parks between the hours of 7 p.m. and 9 a.m.

— Source: City of Trail council agenda, Jan. 12