MINNEAPOLIS — Despite Camp Nenookaasi's closure, some Minneapolis shelters reported no uptick in clients Thursday.
The city, Hennepin County, and other nonprofits reported spending hundreds of hours at the camp since August connecting residents with resources.
But on Thursday, the day of the scheduled closure, people living in the encampment on the corner of 13th Avenue South and East 23rd Street in Minneapolis' Phillips neighborhood moved their belongings a few blocks away.
"You can't take my family away from me," said a woman, who identified herself as Marissa. Marissa spoke at a press conference organized by Camp Nenookaasi volunteers and leaders.
"The camp has given me a home," she said. "It has given me a family."
Dellenna Harper is the executive director at The Salvation Army's Harbor Light Center. The shelter partnered with Hennepin County to open up overflow space in their warming center that began Jan. 1.
While she and her staff are kept busy from people coming to them to escape the cold, she didn't see an uptick in people requesting services today.
"Having experienced homeless myself personally, I totally understand," said Harper. "Because Harbor Light is a low barrier shelter, we allow people in experiencing many different experiences, whether it's substance abuse issues, mental health issues. There's a lot that they might have to experience staying here, unfortunately, being a part of the community."
She said regardless, Harbor Light serves without discrimination and would welcome people. She expects beds to be empty tonight for both men and women in their shelter.
In a statement, the city said that 130 community members who had been living at the encampment have been connected to housing or shelter options. It also cited increasingly dangerous conditions inside the camp.
"Within the past four months, the encampment has been the site of a fatal shooting, a drug overdose death, sexual assault, vandalism, open drug use, stray gunshots, complaints of human waste, and more than one hundred 9-1-1 calls," a city spokesperson said in a statement.
Nicole Mason, Camp Nenookaasi founder, said there's a lack of resources that prioritizes Native culture.
"We want to stop encampments," said Mason. "We've been fighting for this healing center to help our people in recovery, to help them through the stages, meeting them where they're at. The government has been doing this to our people for a long time. Deciding. We have to pick up the pieces and heal our people over the generational trauma. Give us the resources so that we can heal our own people."
Steve Horsfield is the executive director at Simpson Housing Services. He said he was preparing to accommodate people tonight, despite their shelter being full.
"We were able to get we were able to get a handful of folks moved out in the weeks leading up to now," he said. "We are certainly willing to flex to accommodate the needs of the community at times like this. We have made space available but we have not had anyone take us up on it as of yet coming from the encampments today."
Anna Cisewski is the communication manager with Agate Housing and Services. Her team has also been helping camp folks connect to resources.
"There are very few shelter beds available," she said. "We have reserved some beds in case people needed them. As far as I've heard from our teams, they just had those shelter beds available in case but it hasn't sounded like there hasn't been an increase in people coming."
Avivo Service Area Director in Ending Homelessness Division John Tribbett said he can understand why folks living at the camp are opting to relocate.
"I think if encampment eviction was a viable solution to people experiencing unsheltered homelessness, we would have solved the problem six years ago," said Tribbett. "We know that it disrupts our ability to connect with people and get them into either shelter space or housing."
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