Removal of residents at homeless encampment alongside Deerfoot Trail begins

Police, City of Calgary bylaw enforcement officers and the Alpha House encampments team descended on a pair of large homeless camps Tuesday afternoon.

The first one they hit is aside Deerfoot Trail about 100 metres off the Bow River pathway.

They quickly began to disassemble portions of the camp, which included a large copper recycling facility.

Police say while they are tearing down the homeless camps, they are not targeting the homeless, but rather the criminal activity within the camps.

When police were first alerted to the encampments, they discovered stolen trailers, John Deere Gators and blowers and a cache of weapons including airsoft guns, a rifle and close to a dozen throwing axes.

"Our investigation was primarily driven by the criminal behaviour we're finding at both of these locations," said Calgary Police Service Superintendent Scott Boyd.

But no matter how it is described, dismantling the encampments will put close to two dozen people out of the places they call home.

Many of the people living in the ramshackle shacks say they have been forcibly removed from previous encampments.

Kimberly Hanson lives in one of the shanties.

She admits it's messy and filled with trash, but says it is infinitely better than living on the street or in a shelter.

She doesn't know what she will do when forced to move later this week.

"I don't want to go back out there. It's like trauma. Every day (on the street) is trauma. In here, it's not like that. You get to relax a little bit," said Hanson.

"Out there, it's horrible. I don't want to go back."

The Alpha House encampment team works with enforcement officers to assist residents as they leave their makeshift homes.

"We work with them to reduce displacement, to make sure we can find them again and connect them with resources, housing resources, detox, basic needs, medical supplies," said Alpha House spokesperson Shaundra Bruvall.

"When we work with clients, it's really about reducing displacement but when the camp gets too big or too expansive, or there's too many things in there that are dangerous for the folks that are staying there, then we clean those up."

Many of the people living in the ramshackle shacks say they have been forcibly removed from previous encampments.

"They are shuffling us around like a deck of cards," said one resident who only identified himself as Brendan.

He said most campers will simply set up shop elsewhere.

"What else are you going to do?"

In the second encampment on the west side of Deerfoot Trail, residents were given a couple of days more time to pack up their belongings and go, but most say they have nowhere to take all their stuff, and no way to get it there if they did.

"It is what it is," said encampment resident Don Nichols.

"I'll try and move everything I can carry, and then the rest, I will lose it all."

Police say while they are tearing down the homeless camps, they are not targeting the homeless, but rather the criminal activity within the camps.

Police say when they discover stolen items in these encampments, they attempt to reunite them with their original owners.

They admit that's just a small portion of the items in the encampments.

Everything else they say is so contaminated it will go to a landfill.

Police say that should serve as an important reminder to Calgarians to mark down the serial numbers of valuables and report them if stolen.

Police, City of Calgary bylaw enforcement officers and the Alpha House encampments team descended on a pair of large homeless camps Tuesday afternoon.