Vancouver council decides to not expand camping bans because ‘it might make it worse for everyone’

November’s emergency declaration opened options for the city but adding more areas to a camping ban comes with its own issues

By Alexis Weisend, Columbian staff reporter

Published: March 12, 2024, 2:17pm

When the city of Vancouver declared homelessness to be a civil emergency in November, it opened new options for restricting camping. But on Monday, city staff recommended holding back on changes.

“Some of our internal conversation in preparation for this meeting today was, ‘Would enacting any ordinance changes now actually improve the situation for anybody — people experiencing homelessness plus the community at large?’ ” City Manager Eric Holmes said.

Holmes told the Vancouver City Council he spoke with Jamie Spinelli, the city’s homeless response manager before the workshop.

“And where we landed was really ‘no.’ In a lot of ways, it might make it worse for everyone,” he said.

The city declared the civil emergency due to increases in substance use, overdoses, violence, victimization, fires, untreated mental and physical health conditions, lack of engagement with services, difficulty tending to basic needs, criminal activity and a build-up of biohazards and solid waste in camps.

Spinelli examined ways to enforce camping that might address these issues.

If the city banned camping in more areas, that might spread out the impacts of camping and lessen predatory behavior, she explained to the council Monday.