Encampment in downtown Guelph cleared after eviction notices issued

The encampment that has existed for months in downtown Guelph's St. George's Square was mostly cleared by Wednesday evening.

Two tents remained at 5 p.m. It was a day-long effort by city staff to remove empty tents while advocates and shelter staff helped people move to other locations or into shelter beds.

Chris Williams who is part of the Guelph Tiny Homes Coalition said he arrived at the encampment Wednesday at 7 a.m. and soon after bylaw officials, police officers and city staff also arrived. 

"I believe there's still some people who are not interested in voluntarily leaving. So we'll see. We're getting to that tension point here," he said mid-morning.

Shortly after, bylaw officials started to talk to people in the encampment and asked them to leave. As tents were removed from raised garden beds, other city staff planted small evergreen trees and snow fencing was put up around the gardens.

Williams said people who lived in the encampment seemed unclear about where they should go. The city had offered a map on its website of where people were permitted to set up a tent, but the map has not been operational for at least a week.

"It's a little awkward for people finding spots," he said. "There's a park down the street they offered."

WATCH | People living at downtown Guelph homeless encampment asked to move:

A new public space use bylaw came into effect in Guelph on Oct. 1, which prohibits tents and structures from being erected in specific areas, including St. George's Square. 

Colleen Clack-Bush, deputy CAO of public services for the city, told CBC News at the time the city was not going to rush into the encampment and move people out.

"We want to make sure that we're rolling it out in a respectful way and also making sure that we are properly documenting everything that we're doing," Clack-Bush said in an interview.

Mayor Cam Guthrie has been vocal on social media about open drug use at the downtown encampment and in the city's parks. Back in September, police arrested a couple for having sex in public near Wyndham St. N. and Quebec St. in the early evening. A video of the incident was posted to social media.

Earlier this month, Guelph Police Service Chief Gordon Cobey announced the service was stepping up the number of officers who would be in the downtown core to address "open drug use," criminal behaviours and public safety concerns.

"We're responding to an ever increasing concern being expressed to us that our public is telling us they simply don't feel safe," Cobey told CBC Kitchener-Waterloo's The Morning Edition host Craig Norris.