Final tent removed from Victoria Park

A camper packs up in Victoria Park on Monday. A news release from the Halifax Regional Municipality said the park was finally cleared on Friday. (CBC - image credit)
A camper packs up in Victoria Park on Monday. A news release from the Halifax Regional Municipality said the park was finally cleared on Friday. (CBC - image credit)

The final tent at Halifax's Victoria Park has been removed.

No municipal staff were available for an interview on Friday, but the city said in a news release that the last person living at the park was removed without incident.

Halifax Regional Police confirmed to CBC News they helped the municipality with the removal of the person from the park earlier in the day. Police are working with the municipality to find new accommodations for the person.

The reason the person had to leave the park, the municipality said, was for safety reasons because heavy equipment was being used at the site.

Victoria Park is now vacant. The municipality said fencing will remain up "for the safety of the public and contractors as clean up efforts continue." Pathways through the park will remain open, unless they need to be closed temporarily to allow heavy machinery through as needed.

The municipality said remediation work will include testing to identify contaminants in the soil which will determine what happens next. Victoria Park officially closed on Feb. 7.

Grand Parade, Correctional Centre Park

The encampment at Grand Parade is down to three people, the municipality said.

Cleanup is underway and the remaining people are being offered "supports and resources" by municipal housing and homelessness staff as well as street navigators. A fence is also up around the area.

The municipality expects to share another update on the status of Grand Parade in the coming days.

Correctional Centre Park in Lower Sackville was cleared out earlier this week. The municipality said a provincial contractor will install fencing there so work can begin on the province's tiny home community project.

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