Former Geary Street encampment site in Dartmouth, N.S., vacant, crews install fencing

A man is pictured holding an eviction notice outside of his tent at the Geary Street green space in Dartmouth, N.S.

Three days after the deadline to official de-designate the Geary Street encampment site in Dartmouth, N.S., the area is now officially empty as crews put up fencing.

The Halifax Regional Municipality de-designated the location on May 28. People living and sleeping in the area had until June 22 to find another place to stay.

“Currently, there are several available spaces within multiple provincial indoor shelters and temporary housing,” a news release from the municipality reads. “As a result, the municipality directed that people sheltering at Geary Street green space vacate this location. Over the past three years, this site has consistently had fewer individuals sleeping rough and has also recorded the lowest usage among designated locations in recent months.”

The municipality said three people were still sheltering at the site as of Wednesday morning. Municipal housing and homelessness staff helped them move to “alternative locations” and the area is now vacant, according to the municipality.

“Due to the heavy use of the area as a designated location, it will need to be remediated,” the release reads. “Now that it is vacant, it will be inspected and a plan will be developed to determine how long it will take to clean and remediate the space.”

Last year the municipality de-designated the encampment site on University Avenue in Halifax. There are now four remaining sites:

• Green Road Park in Dartmouth
• the Barrington Street green space
• Cogswell Park
• Lower Flinn Park in Halifax

The municipality says there are currently 48 tents and four trailers spread across these four sites, which were established in July 2022.

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