The Salvation Army will now provide “on-site management of client care” at an East Anchorage campground where about 200 unsheltered residents now live.
The tarps draped over tents and stretched over campsites were still dripping with rainwater on a quiet Monday morning at Centennial Park Campground in East Anchorage.
Other campers, with tarps and better tents, stayed dry over the weekend, like Sapphire Tyone. She’s been houseless for a few years and came to the campground to stay with her mother. Her mom has camped in Anchorage for a long time, living outside during the winter, she said.When the rain started last week, Tyone put up a large white canopy. She’s also set up a new tent for her mom.
For now, the campground is the city’s largest and primary shelter option for people with nowhere to stay. Anchorage’s shelters and transitional housing sites are full, with waitlists.As the sun broke through the clouds over the campground and Monday morning shifted into afternoon, more campers began to stir, leaving their tents to grab lunch from the Bean’s Cafe food truck.
More tarps, ropes, tents, warm clothing, outdoor gear and camping supplies are needed. Some campers arrived with little to no gear and some with no camping experience. Last Thursday, a woman died after she was found unresponsive. Her death was a drug overdose, according to Roger Branson, a volunteer who has been staying on-site and running a resource center, helping to organize donation distribution. Several other campers that night also overdosed but were revived with Narcan and lifesaving efforts of medics, he said.
Campers have also been sharing supplies and helping each other stay dry, said Lara Creighton. She has been staying at Centennial since May, before the city repurposed it, after losing her home during an eviction, she said. So far, she has given away tarps, tents and clothing, she said. Rivera said Assembly members are being flooded with emails and calls from constituents who are overwhelmingly upset with what they hear about the encampment.
“Most notably is any vetting of occupants or limits on the number of individuals allowed into Centennial campground,” ACEH said. “We continue to receive reports of dangerous activity and basic needs of occupants not being met. Without staffing the location with an experienced homelessness service provider 24/7, we do not believe the current arrangement can be made safe. And even with staffing, we urge the census at Centennial be reduced.
Mike Braniff, director appointee for Anchorage Parks and Recreation, second from left, and Alexis Johnson, chief of staff for Mayor Dave Bronson, second from right, talk with others at Centennial Campground on Monday.
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