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District of Squamish’s low-rent campground to shut for the winter

After becoming a haven for vulnerable residents, it will be closed for months
Rodney Moule,
Rodney Moule, a vehicle resident, said in a letter to council: “If there was somewhere affordable, I would be there. If the campsite closes, all of us will be forced back to parking on the streets again. We are all willing to pay for a spot to call home. I hope this might help you with your decision.”

The District hath giveth, and now it shall taketh away — at least for the winter.

Citing flooding concerns and the possibility of freezing pipes over the cold months, council voted Tuesday to shut the municipality’s heavily-discounted campground for the winter, leaving a question mark in the air for its vulnerable tenants.

“As a person with disabilities, I can’t afford anywhere else in town to rent,” said Rodney Moule, a vehicle resident, in a letter to council.

“If there was somewhere affordable, I would be there. If the campsite closes, all of us will be forced back to parking on the streets again. We are all willing to pay for a spot to call home. I hope this might help you with your decision.”

District campground near Brennan Park Recreation Centre.
The District campground near Brennan Park Recreation Centre. - File photo/Jennifer Thuncher

Earlier this year, in response to COVID-19, the District instituted bargain rates of $200 a month on the campground as a means to provide housing for people who’ve run into financially hard times due to the pandemic.

The measure also offered an affordable place for vanlifing, a practice that the municipality intended to ban, though that was put on hold after a show of resistance.

In a divided 4-3 vote, council decided to shut the campground for the winter, which has been its standard practice due to the inadequacy of the facility to brave the harsher weather.

Mayor Karen Elliott, and councillors John French, Doug Race and Eric Andersen supported the closure, saying the net price tag of about $34,000 required to winterize the site may be a sunk cost.

The area was intended to be a temporary solution and people will be moved to different locations eventually, they said. Furthermore, the District is toying with the idea of relocating the actual campground itself to another area, making it harder to justify the investment, they said.

 “This area is not ideal in the winter whatsoever, and I don’t think it’s practical to spend money that ultimately we won’t need, because we want to move the campground to a different location, so I don’t think that’s a good use of taxpayer dollars,” said Elliott.

“That being said, this is a problematic decision for our council, and by supporting the motion to close, it doesn’t mean ending the conversation.”

She also blamed the province for its inability to address housing issues — which is its mandate — and said Victoria was instead shoving the responsibility on the municipality.

“Senior government’s dropped the ball, but I will continuously pick up that ball,” Elliott said, while promising to keep advocating for housing solutions.

The next-best rate in town is the Mamquam River Campground, which is $250 a month starting in November, but capacity there will be limited due to COVID-19 protocols.

The Mamquam River Campground.
The Mamquam River Campground. - File photo/Jennifer Thuncher

Market-rate campgrounds can be as expensive as paying rent for a room or studio in Squamish. For example, a campsite for up to two at Klahanie Campground can cost close to $1,200 per month.

It was a fact not lost on councillors Jenna Stoner, Armand Hurford and Chris Pettingill — the three who opposed the closure.

“We opened up the campground on this basis, knowing that it wasn’t going to be a permanent solution, but I don’t think we are at the natural end date for it, because we don’t have a clear direction of what the next steps are,” said Stoner.

She added that $1,200 a month is far out of reach for a vulnerable person living in the municipal campground.

If the $34,000 wasn’t spent on improving the campsite, Stoner said the municipality would probably have to pay enforcement and outreach costs for vanlifers who’d end up camping on the streets or forest service roads.

“Investing some dollars to keep our campground open through the winter is a more humane and sustainable solution in the short term, until we can come up with some more robust long-term options,” she said.

At least one vanlifer in the campground said they didn’t mind it if the water stopped running — just so long as there was a place to stay.

“I am not sure you grasp the repercussion[s] of this decision on the life of the people you’re sending back to the streets,” said Noémie Anselme in a letter to council.

“Winter in a vehicle is not easy and I am sure everyone settled at the campground would be grateful to be allowed to stay on an otherwise useless gated piece of land. We understand that the municipal campground isn’t winterized and might never be, but to be honest, we can live without access to running water, just like campers staying at the Mamquam River Campground and everyone on the streets do.”

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