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The planned cleanup of two encampments in Saskatoon has been paused due to aggressive protests, the city said.
Crews were set to clean two vacant lots at Avenue K between 19th Street and 20th Street Thursday morning when protesters tried to stop them from working, the City of Saskatoon said. It alleged that the demonstrators circled crews’ vehicles and climbed on top of the fencing, which was stacked on one of them.
“Saskatoon Fire Department, police officers and other partner agency staff were confronted by aggressive protestors, directing profane, derogatory and vulgar comments at them,” the city claimed in a news release.
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Workers present at the site Thursday reported the majority of those involved did not appear to be encampment occupants, according to the City of Saskatoon.
The city acknowledged that its decision may frustrate people in the area, including the students, families of students and staff at the St. Mary’s Wellness and Education Centre, who have been requesting Saskatoon to step in for a year.
David Fineday lives in Saskatoon and is a member of the Sweetgrass First Nation. He spoke at a news conference at the encampment site Thursday, before the city announced it is pausing work.
“They want to displace all of these people; they want (them) to get out of here. And my question is, ‘where are they going to put them?’” Fineday told reporters, adding that “they want to take them down, so they have to re-place them somewhere.”
He said the city should have to provide people who would be displaced with alternative places to live after the site is cleaned up.
“There’s lots of people here that want help, that need help, that are on survival mode,” Fineday added.
“This tent city is just like any other neighbourhood in this city. The only thing is we don’t have affordable housing.”
The City of Saskatoon is planning its next steps for the encampments, it said.
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