Makeshift shelters torn down, removed in Charlottetown

Crews were on site Wednesday tearing down makeshift shelters and cleaning up debris in the capital of Prince Edward Island.

The work began in the morning hours, with some unhoused individuals still there when crews arrived.

Community policing officers were on site while belongings were packed up and removed from the premises.

The city said the site had become a fire hazard. The land is owned by the province, so it’s their responsibility to take care of the clean-up.

It’s been nearly a month since the province’s emergency shelter opened on Park Street in Charley. It’s a safer location, and many of the 20 to 25 people who had been living outside at the encampment’s peak in the summer of 2022 have moved in to the shelter.

Housing support groups said the site has become increasingly dangerous due to winter weather, with rising risks of fires or carbon monoxide poisoning for those trying to stay warm.

The city and province said support has been offered to all those who had been living at the encampment, particularly the Park Street modular shelter. However, using that shelter is voluntary, so it isn’t clear where the people still at the site Wednesday morning will be resting their heads tonight.