Homeless campers and their supporters rallied outside Goldstream Provincial Park on Saturday, calling for better affordable housing options.
About 30 campers, former residents of a tent city at a Saanich park, were told they have to leave Goldstream by Oct. 2.
Housing minister Selina Robinson said campers will be transitioned “to shelter and housing.” However camp resident Morgan Van Kumbeck says better housing should be made available.
“It’s not hard to fix these problems. It’s just red tape,” Van Kumbeck said.
The Saturday morning rally was also an attempt to allay neighbours’ fears.
WATCH: Popular Vancouver Island park remains closed amid homeless encampment
The park has been closed since Sept. 19, back when campers moved in. Since then, the province has been working to “decamp” the park.
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However, campers and their supporters marched right back into the park during the Saturday morning rally — past police, park rangers and the blockade — prompting some neighbours to make their frustrations known.
READ MORE: Goldstream Provincial Park campground closed after homeless campers move in
“One of the big things that is going on with the neighbourhood, it makes them uneasy,” Leonard Chevrier, who lives in the area, told Global News. “And of course not being able to see what goes on down in the park it makes them ever more uneasy.”
Chevrier said he’s been to the camp and did not see the same kind of debris left behind in Saanich. He’s optimistic about this week.
“I think on the first, our majority of campers down there are actually going to leave and it’s going to be pretty peaceful,” Chevrier said.
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