Ernest John is relieved that legal action, which would force him out of the Fairview homeless encampment in Penticton, has been put on hold, at least for now.
“I do have a certain fear being forced to do something and move,” John told Global News.
The Ministry of Transportation owns the land, but the province’s application for a court injunction to evict the roughly two dozen residents and dismantle the camp, along a busy stretch of Highway 97, has been postponed.
A hearing was scheduled to begin in Penticton provincial court on Monday, but it has been adjourned with no new date scheduled.
“I have no idea where I would go after this,” John said. “Nowhere to turn, nowhere to plant our feet.”
While empathetic to the plight of the encampment residents, nearby businesses are frustrated.
“I was hoping for a little bit more forward progress and now it seems like it’s all completely halted again,” said Luke Bradley, truck sales consultant at Inland Truck and Equipment.
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“They’ve been there for two-and-a-half years, almost three years, and it’s just progressively gotten worse and worse.”
Among the concerns are frequent fires, including the latest one on Thursday.
There have been at least half a dozen fires at the site in the past two-and-a-half months.
Last year, one of the fires spread to the Leisureland RV Centre and destroyed two trailers.
Business operators say the risk isn’t just to neighbouring properties but also to the encampment residents.
“Potential danger to themselves, too,” Bradley said. “They’ve been allowed to make a homestead out of it. But it’s not, it’s not a responsible homestead.”
While both sides agreed to adjourn for now, the province won’t elaborate or say what its intention is moving forward, stating, “the matter remains before the courts. ”
The Penticton and Area Access Centre, which promotes equal and just access to all available support services, has taken up the cause and says the adjournment will allow encampment residents more time to find legal representation.
“If they don’t have any representation, they can’t defend themselves,” said Lucy Whittaker, the centre’s executive director. “They can’t speak up and explain why they are there and where they might, what might be a reasonable solution.”
With the understanding that an injunction is still being pursued, Whittaker issued a plea to the community.
“If there’s any lawyers out there that might be able to take this case on pro bono, we’d really love to hear from you,” Whittaker said.
Bradley said the government needs to take action before anyone is hurt or any more property damage is done.
He also urged the government to provide the necessary support to assist encampment residents.
“The government needs to find a way to help support them and fix this problem,” Bradley said.
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