Displaced residents of Saanich homeless camp move to Rudd Park

Evicted residents of a tent city in Saanich, B.C., assembled tents at another park Thursday night, raising concerns from neighbours.

More than 100 residents of Camp Namegans were ordered to leave Regina Park on Tuesday. By Thursday, Saanich police said they had peacefully removed the final campers from the site, a grassy space next to Highway 1.

But with nowhereto go, roughly 30 of the campers set up tents overnight Thursday at RuddPark, about a 10-minute walk away.

Saanich police said it met thecampers Friday morning and reminded them of the parks bylaw. But several stayed in the afternoon to protest their displacement.

The campers' sudden arrival sparked worry from thosein the neighbourhood. Louise Williams said she locked up her bikes.

"We were frustrated. We got no warning this was happening," she said.

Lindsay Edgar said she was concerned that the tent city would stay in the park, which includes a playground,for morethan a few days.

"I don't want to come here and say, 'Not in my backyard,' because if it leaves here, it goes somewhere else," she added.

The Gorge Soccer Association tweetedthat it was considering cancelling its soccer game on Saturday.

Not enough support, says camper

The District of Saanichsaidit'sworking with B.C. Housing to provide accommodation as a short-term solution until more permanent housing can be built.

But Chrissy Brett, a camp founder and member of the Nuxalk Nation, saidthe municipalities are shuffling people around instead of tackling homelessness.

Brett saidthat shelters are full and thehousing being offered doesn't providesupport for people with mental illnesses and addictions.

She said the campers were still deciding whether to stay at Rudd Park overnight Friday "to make a statement," or to move on to other parks in the city.

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