A tiny pocket of provincial land nestled within the District of North Vancouver has become the site of an encampment, known to locals as Bowser Island. But the so-called island is in the process of becoming deserted.
Earlier this month residents were issued an order from the Ministry of Transportation and Transit, which owns the land, located just off of Highway 1.
They were told they had to vacate the premises by June 15th, throwing some of them into precarious situations.
“We’ve been offered a bed at the shelter in North Shore, so I guess I’ll be staying there for the evening and we’ll go from there,” said Tara Skrumedi.
Tara Skrumedi has lived at the encampment on and off for the last four years. She says a real community has grown here, so there’s mixed reaction to the eviction.
“There’s a few people that are a little upset, there’s a couple of people that I understand that have found housing, have found a place, and they’re quite excited too, but at the same time they’re sad to leave.”
Other residents CityNews spoke with described being unsure of where they were going next or what they would do with their belongings.
In a statement to CityNews, the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs said “The Province knows encampments are not safe for the people sheltering there or for the surrounding community. The priority is ensuring people in these areas have access to support, shelter and pathways into stable, long-term housing to help get people indoors.”
District of North Vancouver councillor Herman Mah says officials have been lobbying the province to shut down the encampment for more than a year but because the land isn’t owned by the municipality, it doesn’t have the power to enforce its bylaws. Mah says it isn’t meant to be punitive.
“The key concern with the occupants of Bowser Island is safety. As you can see, this is a very busy intersection. Cars are speeding up to head onto the freeway, and there’s an off-ramp right here, and when you come off, you’re not expecting cars to come out,” said Mah.
Mah, who lives in the adjacent Pemberton Heights neighbourhood, says there have been other issues as well, namely thefts, sewage dumping, and fires.
“So, there is a risk, and given the warm temperature, if this goes up, there’s a lot of trees in this area. That would pose a risk to the community.”
But residents say they’ve been unfairly scapegoated.
“I guess they’ll see once the people from here are gone and the theft still occurs, they’ll realize that here isn’t the problem,” said Skrumedi.
The province says plans are still being developed on how to remediate the area – which will eventually be turned into a maintenance hub for highway crews.