By first light Thursday morning, Bobhe Quinn was getting a campfire going with wood dampened by overnight rain. It was a chilly 2C outside. The cold rain had stopped.
“It got really cold and wet last night,” said Quinn, one of five people remaining in a tent encampment along the Eramosa River, a five-minute walk along the Guelph Radial Trail east of Victoria Road.
While he fed the small fire, Quinn said the campers got another day of grace and have until Friday to clear out of the site after being ordered to do so.
Quinn was also burning off a small amount of garbage he had swept from the ground and set it close to his fire. Among the garbage were a pair of hypodermic needles that appeared to be used.
Quinn spent much of Wednesday moving a much larger amount of garbage and abandoned items to the edge of the site, where he said it would be picked up and taken to Guelph’s waste facility. He added that a social agency is helping him and his girlfriend with their move.
A pair of female runners along the trail passed the mound of detritus in the early morning and stopped. One called it “disgusting.” Her remark was overheard by a male inside a nearby enclosure that holds a series of three tents and a wood-burning stove. His voice was heard angrily telling the woman to mind her own business.
There were other signs of packing up Thursday morning, as one man cleared his tent and began taking it down.
Campers said on Wednesday the site was visited a week earlier by University of Guelph Campus Police, Guelph Police, and City of Guelph bylaw officials.
New signs along Guelph Radial Trail with U of G identification at the bottom warn that “no motorized vehicles, no overnight use, no fires” are allowed.
Elsewhere on the property, no trespassing signs have recently been posted by the Guelph Turfgrass Institute, which is a partnership between the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and University of Guelph. The Turfgrass Institute is in the process of relocating to land on the north end of the U of G Arboretum.
On Thursday morning, U of G spokesperson Lori Bona Hunt said in an email that the land is owned by the province, and the university has no involvement in its future use.
She said a trespassing complaint came in to the university, and the university contacted the Guelph Police Service, who attended and managed the incident.
U of G campus police did not issue any notice or handle any property or items related to the campers, she added, because the land does not fall within the university’s jurisdiction.
“The entire incident was controlled by the Guelph Police,” she wrote.
As yet, there has been no response to inquiries made to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs about the rationale behind the eviction.
Quinn said that a local organization called SOS (Specialized Outreach Services) has stepped in to help him and his girlfriend, Michele, move their belongings to a storage facility, and possibly get them into a temporary shelter. The young woman, he said, has been sick of late.
SOS helps adults over the age of 18 who have mental health and addiction issues, and are homeless or at-risk of being homeless.
“They gave us until Friday now to clear out,” Quinn said. He and others have credited Guelph Police Constable Buzz Dean with helping to extend deadlines and ensure the move is done in a respectful and orderly manner.
Quinn added that two other campers had “another site in mind” for setting up an alternative camp. Another person left his tent and some personal items behind and has not returned.
“They expect the site to be cleaned up by Friday morning,” Quinn said, speaking of the authorities. “SOS is trying to get us out of here as best they can today. They don’t want us to lose our stuff. I think they will help us with housing. The priority right now is to clean up the campsite.”
The site has been used by squatters on and off for as many as two years. Since the spring, up to nine people have called it home.
Joanna Couture, who spoke to GuelphToday on Wednesday, has been on the site since August with her boyfriend. She said it is nearly impossible to find a safe and affordable place to live in Guelph, adding that her preference would be to find another secluded site outdoors in which to live.