All the residents of a homeless encampment in Browns Woods have left, according to city officials.
The City of Bloomington started clearing the camp as scheduled on Dec. 8. Residents of the camp were served 30-day eviction notices last month, and all but two left before the start of the closure.
Bloomington Homelessness Response Coordinator Brian Giffen said the site was closed due to safety concerns.
“We had a call for a fire, and just with the inaccessible nature of the encampment, emergency services are not easily able to get back there,” he said. “If there were to be a large fire, we can't get a fire engine back there.”
Giffen said when city officials decide to close an encampment, they’re in communication with residents for weeks ahead of time to ensure they have somewhere safe to go.
“The major factor we want to make sure is that we’re not showing up on a day and forcing somebody out,” he said. “Our goal is never to just, like, sweep the camp. So, we want to make sure that we know where everyone is going.”
In a press release, the City of Bloomington acknowledged that cold temperatures could be dangerous for people living outside, but Giffen said he believed the city and partnering agencies like the Bloomington Severe Winter Emergency Shelter and Stride Crisis Center could support displaced residents.
A separate encampment on county property north of RCA Community Park was set to be cleared this week, but after public outcry due to cold weather, the removal of that camp was delayed until Dec. 15.
