Trespassing notices were handed out at Berczy Park on Tuesday after members of advocacy groups allegedly interfered with the ongoing cleanup and maintenance of the Barrie homeless encampment.
“While Berczy Park remained posted as closed to allow for the ongoing cleanup from the encampment fire and maintenance of the park, advocacy groups were interfering with the city’s enforcement officers, the city’s contractor and police,” said Dawn McAlpine, the city’s general manager of community and corporate services, in a statement issued today just before 4:30 p.m.
“The advocacy groups were directing that tents and materials previously identified by the County (of Simcoe) and its outreach provider as abandoned be given to them and have been occupying tents that have been abandoned," she added. "The individuals were advised that their actions were obstructing, the park was closed and the actions could not continue."
As a result, McAlpine said the advocacy groups were issued trespass notices, which will be "actioned accordingly.”
The city issued two verbal warnings Tuesday with immediate compliance and five trespass to property notices were issued for those who hadn’t complied.
“Although typically effective immediately, the written notices were given until tomorrow (Wednesday) for compliance,” McAlpine said.
The city did not say which advocacy groups or their members received such notices.
McAlpine’s statement said there are a few unhoused individuals who have unique needs that the county and its contracted outreach provider are continuing to address. Those individuals have not been issued trespass notices, she said.
On Monday, McAlpine the majority of the individuals within the park have accepted offers of shelter, but that the city planned to issue trespass notices to those who do not identify any unique needs and continue to be in contravention of the city's bylaws.
The County of Simcoe, which leads housing and homelessness services within Barrie, has been able to make shelter spaces available. It has provided offers of shelter to individuals at Berczy Park, either directly or through its contracted outreach provider, McAlpine said. In addition to shelter, the county has also arranged for temporary secure storage for personal belongings.
Because of the availability of shelter space, and offers of shelter spaces being extended, 21 notices of action required were issued last week identifying matters contrary to the city’s bylaws. Those included placing debris on city property contrary to the nuisance bylaw, fouling the land by urinating and defecating, and camping within a public park, contrary to the parks use bylaw. The timeline for the resolution of those contraventions was Sept. 6.
Last year, an Ontario Superior Court ruling deemed bylaws prohibiting homeless
McAlpine said the city has received many complaints related to local encampments. There have also been several fires in encampments this year, including two fires this past weekend, one of which was at Berczy Park.
An early morning fire on Sunday, measuring about 30-by-15 feet in size, burned tents and clothing in Berczy Park, according to Barrie Fire officials. No injuries were reported from the blaze.
McAlpine said when a complaint is received by Barrie’s municipal law enforcement office, or an encampment discovered while on patrol, the local sheltering and outreach organizations, the County of Simcoe and city police are notified of the matter with a request for attendance to provide shelter and support services that may be available as the initial part of the response.
Berczy Park, which contains one of Barrie’s many homeless encampments, is located southeast of Wellington Street East. Much of the 2.2-acre park has been occupied by tents, with fire pits and clothing hanging on lines and branches to dry.
