B.C. Supreme Court judge grants City of Abbotsford an injunction against the homeless

    1 of 1 2 of 1

      A court ruling has given homeless people until 4:30 p.m. today (December 14) to vacate a parking lot near Jubilee Park in Abbotsford.

      Justice Murray B. Blok issued the order late yesterday against people who set up a tent city surrounded by plywood in the area.

      This came after the city had ordered them out of the park.

      "The Defendants and all other persons having knowledge of this Order shall remove and cease from erecting, constructing or building tents, shelters, structures or other constructions other than the Structure on the Lands," Blok wrote.

      He noted that costs will be dealt with "upon completion of the application", which will occur on Monday (December 17).

      James G. Yardley acted for the City of Abbotsford; D.J. Larkin of Pivot Legal Society represented the homeless campers.

      Last month, Pivot Legal Society announced that it had filed a human-rights complaint on behalf of homeless people after city officials had dumped chicken manure on an earlier encampment.

      "If that wasn't enough the police also used their pepper spray to coat the inside of the tents, destroying the belongings and setting a trap for the occupier when they returned and opened the door," alleged Pivot's Darcie Bennett in a November 28 blog post

      For more on what led up to yesterday's decision, see Straight homeless blogger Stanley Q. Woodvine's report on the situation.

      Comments

      6 Comments

      janalia

      Dec 14, 2013 at 10:52am

      Occupy the jails? Might be warmer than the park anyway. And maybe free food?..

      Michael Puttonen

      Dec 15, 2013 at 2:26pm

      According to the Fraser Valley Regional District Homelessness Survey of 2011 - Abbotsford had 117 homeless people. They are served by 27 shelter beds, which are increased somewhat only during 'extreme weather emergencies'.

      The shelter situation is even worse in Chilliwack and Hope. There seems to be nowhere in the upper Fraser Valley for these people to find shelter.

      It reminds me of a story I heard once, around this time of year, about an aging carpenter...his pregnant young wife...they nowhere to rest...hmmm...

      Alan Layton

      Dec 16, 2013 at 9:32am

      I'm glad to see the harsh light of the media being shone on somewhere else other than Vancouver for a change. So many municipalities and cities in the lower mainland spend nothing (ie Burnaby) or next to nothing on housing the homeless. They've been forcing them in to Vancouver, which is already overflowing with homeless and it's costing us a fortune to house them. Time for other places to help shoulder the burden and start building facilities for their own homeless.

      collarbone o'hare

      Dec 16, 2013 at 12:20pm

      @ Alan Layton: Good observation Alan. Vancouver has a little under 25% of the population of Metro Vancouver and, I'm told, nearly 75% of the shelter beds. Coleman should force other MV municipalities to take their 'share'. Mayor Corrigan of Burnaby has gone on record saying he doesn't want any homeless there; that they are a senior government reponsibility and he just doesn't like them. And he's NDP!!!!

      collarbone o'hare

      Dec 16, 2013 at 12:46pm

      http://www.burnabynewsleader.com/opinion/189217441.html

      Lest any NDP'ers think I'm a Liberal troll, here's an article from a Burnaby paper which shows Mayor Corrigan's complete distain for the homeless people in his municipality. Some of his comments are amazing. Is he our 'lefty' Rob Ford with better PR? And he's NDP. His wife, Cathy, was being mentioned as possible leader of the NDP!!!!!!
      No wonder they lost. No policies! Just be nice and we'll make them up as we go along.

      A Concerned Citizen

      Dec 16, 2013 at 2:50pm

      All These municipalities Including Vancouver Are Just Sweeping This Problem Under The Carpet. They Are NOT Doing Anything For The Homeless People. These People { The Homeless } Have NO WHERE ELSE To Go,No Jobs, No Money,As Some Do Not Qualify For Income Assistance, ETC. They Are Doing The Best They Can With What They Have.{And All Municipalities } Figure If They Ignore It It Will Go Away By Itself. { NOT LIKELY } I Think The Government Should Step In And Help,As They Seem To Have Lots Of Money To Send Over Seas,So What About Helping Thier Own People And Country First ?