Steven Louis and his friends were standing on a downtown street corner with all their possessions – the day after authorities evicted them from the city hall encampment.
“We actually spent the night under a private carport I guess you could call it,” he explained.
Now the city is cleaning up, an effort that extended to the entire downtown area.
Louis found his things mistakenly loaded onto a city contractor’s truck – leading to an argument and police intervention.
Yesterday police arrested 11 people that refused to leave a tent encampment outside city hall. Many of those displaced spent the night in nearby alleys.
“I was just around the corner – everywhere I go they’ll come and kick me out of there. So I just keep walking,” one camp resident told CTV News.
“They just started helping us pack and move across the street to the parking lot and that’s where we stayed the night and we didn’t know where to go.”
“We still don’t know where to go,” another resident explained.
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One man from the group accepted a night at the YMCA.
Two other camp residents stayed at a parkade ramp across from city hall.
“Under the bridge right there – with the blankets and that was it,” one resident explained.
“I called mobile crisis twice and they basically told me to talk to your worker. First of all, I don’t have a worker,” another resident said, as she explained her circumstances.
Another man tried to tent near the legislative building – but authorities told him to leave.
“I remember a few years ago there was a teepee there and the world was listening,” the man said.
“I don’t know, I guess there’s a difference between the teepee and the tent.”
Things turned out well for Steven Louis – who had his possessions unloaded from the city trailer.
Everyone shook hands. However, Louis and his friends are still out on the street corner – searching for a place to call home.
