HOMELESS INFLUX HITS VICTORIA

Warmer Weather, Vancouver Migration Cited In Estimated 30-Per-Cent
Increase In Street Population

The number of homeless people in Victoria's downtown core has jumped
by as much as 30 per cent in the past few weeks, say police, partly
because of warm weather but also due to a curious migration of street
people from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.

"We do see a little increase when the weather gets warmer, but this
year I've seen a tremendous increase," said Sgt. Jamie Pearce,
commanding officer of Victoria's downtown targeted policing unit.

"It is out of the ordinary, to the point where I'm going, 'Holy
smokes. We're getting more and more people coming here. Where are we
going to put them, and where are they going to go?' "

Pearce has started arriving at work early so he can dedicate the
first hour of his shift to simply waking people who sleep in areas
such as alcoves and on private property, he said.

A count last year by the Victoria Cool Aid Society estimated that
about 700 people in the region were homeless.

The homelessness issue is not limited to Victoria's downtown. Campers
are often reported in public parks in neighbouring municipalities
such as Saanich.

The downtown population has jumped by as much as 30 per cent in
recent weeks, Pearce estimated. Some of the new arrivals say they
left Vancouver to avoid an alleged police crackdown on the homeless, he said.

"These are new people we're coming across on a daily basis," said
Pearce. "And we're getting reports from even our neighbours up in
Nanaimo saying they're getting an influx from Vancouver as well."

The suggestion drew a quick rebuke from the Vancouver Police Department.

"We don't crack down on homeless people, we crack down on criminals,"
said Const. Howard Chow, a Vancouver Police spokesman. The influx
could simply be the normal migration of street people due to warm
weather, he suggested.

But Victoria Police Chief Paul Battershill said it appears more than
just weather has influenced the change. The sudden spike is
"curious," he said. However, the department will canvass the street
population for details, before deciding if more officers should be on
patrol downtown, he said.

One reason for the increase could be the recent closing of three
hotels in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, said Battershill.

That area of Vancouver is well known for its large street population,
and the home of Insite, the first safe injection site in North America.

Vancouver's hotel closings were felt all the way over in Victoria at
the Our Place walk-in street ministry on Johnson Street, said Rev. Al
Tysick. Recent visitors have mentioned leaving the Lower Mainland in
favour of the capital region, he said.

More affordable housing and low-rent accommodation is crucial to deal
with the problem, he said. "Right now our shelters are completely
full, which is not normal," said Tysick.

"Usually this time of year, there is a space at either the Salvation
Army or Streetlink.

"I think there is an increase in the [homeless] population. But the
bigger question we should pose is what are we going to do about it,
and how are we going to handle it?"

"It is a crisis situation we can't hide anymore."