Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
Every Friday, Murray Wood takes a look back at the week's news and decides who's hot... and who's not. This week's list ...
While dozens of tents were still standing in the chilly morning air on Friday, it was still unclear how long they would be allowed to stay at 20th Street and Avenue K in Saskatoon.
Legally, the camp could be torn down at any time. On Tuesday, a judge declined to grant an injunction that would have kept the camp in place until everyone living there had access to appropriate housing.
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The City of Saskatoon declined to give details on whether the camp will be torn down or when that will happen. The city said it was declining to speak publicly about its operational plans.
“The City’s approach to the encampment has consistently focused on connecting individuals with available supports and services while addressing significant health and safety concerns for people staying at the site, the nearby school, neighbouring residents, businesses and the broader community,” the city said in a statement.
In addition, the city said it is committed to working with community partners to support vulnerable people and maintain safe public spaces.
Saskatoon’s city administration has laid out its four-phase encampment response, saying outreach would be offered throughout the process.
The first phase is reporting the existence of an encampment. The second is outreach and support connections, where fire inspectors assess sites for health, safety and access risks to figure out the proper response.
The third phase in the response is clean-up, where a schedule is developed and the required resources and a contractor are put in place. Before the clean-up happens, the response document says anyone still at the encampment is offered connections to support. Once everyone is out, the site is to be cleaned to remove abandoned structures, belongings and garbage.
In the fourth phase, a fire inspector would confirm the clean-up is finished. If it’s not yet complete, the inspector would assess the situation and determine next steps.
The court case
Lawyer Crystal Fafard applied for the injunction, arguing the measure was necessary to prevent irreparable harm to the camp’s residents.
Fafard described the injunction as narrow, temporary and proportionate, saying it would have allowed the city to address its concerns about sanitation and safety, while leaving the camp where it was.
Justice Richard Danyliuk took a day to decide, but ultimately chose not to grant the injunction on Tuesday. In his written decision, he outlined issues around standing, procedure and evidence.
The judge said it isn’t the court’s position to intervene on a matter like the camp, instead indicating a desire to see other government authorities like the city and the province address the issue.
Speaking after the hearing on Monday, David Fineday said he wouldn’t be moving out of the encampment, pointing out that it’s located on Treaty Six territory.
“I didn’t see no receipt that the city bought this off of us. If they can show me a receipt, then I’ll gladly move. But as of my position right now, I’m not moving. I don’t care if I have to go to jail,” Fineday said.
“I’m 70 years old. Why are they doing this to me?”
–with files from 650 CKOM’s Libby Gray and 980 CJME’s Lisa Schick
