The Vancouver Park Board has voted to impose further restrictions on people camping overnight in local parks.
That includes a ban on camping underneath trees or within seven metres of bodies of water or cliffs.
“In terms of the extreme heat that we have experienced previously and we’re predicted to experience a lot more intensely in the future – being able to shelter in shade or near water bodies is extremely important,” Chloe Wells, a supporter of the CRAB Park tent city, told CTV News Monday evening.
The board has also voted to limit tents to 10 feet by 10 feet.
“I’m concerned that this bylaw will further marginalize the community and lead to more serious actions taken by the city that could really harm individuals and the community at large,” added Michelle Gagnon-Creeley, another CRAB Park tent city supporter.
Commissioner Tom Digby pushed back against some of the criticism the park board is being inhumane.
“Fundamentally, I disagree with that,” Digby told CTV News on Monday. “There is nothing humane about rats, about needles, and about feces. There’s like trenchholes filled with open feces at the encampment that staff had to clear out last week. None of that is consistent with human rights or respect for human dignity. So I believe we had to do something.”
Staff made these recommendations by suggesting the existing bylaw on sleeping outdoors overnight wasn’t specific enough.
“It makes it very challenging in many ways,” former CRAB Park resident Andrew Hirschpold told reporters Monday. “It’s challenging for (the park board). I see that, but we need to work together, instead of closing off things. I find them inhumane, these decisions. I find them inconsiderate. And I wish I could see the light in them, in a way.”
The changes also mean people won’t be able to camp overnight in Queen Elizabeth Park or VanDusen Botanical Garden.
