As a tent city continues to grow on the lawn of the Victoria Courthouse, pressure is mounting on the provincial government to do something about it.

The makeshift encampment in the city’s downtown core saw its population increase to around 40 people Thursday, as word continues to spread that the area is a safe haven for the homeless.

Because the courthouse land is owned by the province it isn’t subject to Victoria bylaws, one of which requires tenters to pack up and move elsewhere by 7 a.m. daily.

Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps said she is in talks with the B.C. government to try find a solution.

“[The province] will either apply for an injunction to move people or they won’t, and if they do, what we want to make sure is that those people don’t just get dispersed into other neighbourhood parks,” she said. “We want to try to find a solution to get those folks into housing.”

Helps said council would vote Thursday night on whether or not to help fund rental subsidies for the campers, and reminded residents no immediate action would be taken.

“Even if council approves that tonight, which I hope that we will, it’s not going to be implemented directly,” she said.

But some say the camp isn’t in an appropriate location and are calling on the provincial government to take action – soon.

“I think the immediate needs to be getting those people out of the green space,” said NDP MLA for Victoria-Beacon Hill, Carole James. “I think it’s cold, it’s not a good situation, there aren’t services and supports down there, so I think the provincial government has to come to the table.”

James is calling on the province to partner with service providers in Greater Victoria to offer options for homeless such as shelter beds and rent supplements.

“Long-term, we have to look at building affordable housing,” she said. “My hope is that some of the infrastructure money that the new federal government is talking about will be housing dollars, but I think we better be ready in the province to take advantage of that.”

Neighbours living near the courthouse have made complaints about drug use and break-ins spiking as the camp grows, and one building manager even said she is losing tenants because of it.

Victoria Police took to Twitter Thursday to try to quell those concerns.

They admitted officers were called to the area, a one-block radius around the park, 34 times in November alone, but pointed out that only five of those calls could be attributed to the courthouse camp. All five calls were for “unwanted camping.”

“There has not been a significant increase in property crime or violent crime in that 1 block radius,” police tweeted. “There was one reported B&E in the area this year in that 1 block radius.”

The province hasn’t said much about the growing tent city, issuing another statement Thursday assuring residents it is looking at solutions.

“The B.C. Government is in talks with officials at the City of Victoria to discuss potential solutions to campers at the Victoria Courthouse property and we continue to work closely with the Victoria Police Department,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, those living in the camp said word has spread about the loophole that allows them to plant their tent stakes at the courthouse.

“Any place that we can find where we can keep our homes up, and not on our backs, and then get charged with chatteling tickets, would be the right place for us,” said Chris Parent, who moved to the tent city two nights ago. “We have to find ways of just being a little more kind and accepting, and not turning our nose up at people, and try to see things from their perspective as well.” 

With a report from CTV Vancouver Island's Rob Buffam