Letter from Jeff & Deb Bee regarding PILP camping

From: Jeff & Deb Bee
Sent: December 5, 2022 5:18 PM
To: info@viewroyale.ca; Mayor And Council Email mayorandcouncil@viewroyal.ca
Subject: Bylaw re Overnight camping in View Royals Parks December 6, 2022 Council Meeting

Dear Mayor and Council

Please accept this letter for ACTION.

We are writing to request an Amendment to remove Portage Inlet Linear Park (PILP) from your “allowed” overnight camping.

We are two Senior Citizens living in the Chancellor Ave / StGiles St neighbourhood south of the Trans Canada Highway. We are located between two of the proposed Bylaw designated parks for “homeless” camping, specifically the PLIP and View Royal Park. These are the only nearby Parks available to us for exercise, enjoyment and relaxation, and the PILP is too small for a homeless camp and totally unsuitable as explained below.

By way of background, my husband, almost 80, and I in my 70s walk daily in the PILP. I have mobility problems which have become more complicated in the last two years as a result of two serious falls. I am dependent on the support of my husband’s arm to walk through the PILP. We move at a slow and safe pace, enjoying every minute of it. We don’t have the capacity to move quickly if we were threatened or harassed by a resident of this homeless camp. WE WILL FEEL THREATENED AND EXTREMELY UNSAFE WALKING THROUGH PILP AND IN OUR HOME AT 120 CHANCELLOR AVE, IF PILP BECOMES A HOMELESS CAMP! Given the dangers and what has happened in neighbourhoods with homeless camps in Victoria, there is a strong possibility that we would sell our home and move elsewhere .

The RISK OF VIOLENCE AND CRIME related to homeless encampments has been well documented. This risk is exacerbated when encampments are in very small spaces.

PILP is a very short and narrow park, with most of the space used for the circular pathway stretching the length of the park, with steep slopes on each side of the path. In addition, the Trans Canada Hwy spans the entire north side of the park. This presents a noise and safety issue for Overnight camping. Should this park be used for homeless camping, View Royal will likely need to invest in both noise and safety barriers to protect residents of this camp. The space in between these pathways is very small and populated with many large trees and hedges. There is very LITTLE SPACE for a homeless camp to pitch tents. It’s just not very useable for camping.

PILP has many functions. It is both a bike and pedestrian commuter route which starts early in the morning and goes late into the night. It is also a significant connection to the Galloping Goose Trail. Bikers move quickly on these paths as they go up and down the hills on the pathways. (Interesting to note that our previous Mayor Screech used it for his daily walk home.) In addition, with View Royal’s recent restoration of the shoreline, in partnership with Peninsula Streams Society, PILT has become one the few destinations in View Royal for the community to launch Kayaks and paddle boards. It has become very popular and it’s wonderful to see so many in the community enjoying this new feature in the park. Given this level of activity in a small space, it’s clear that the HEALTH AND SAFETY risk to both campers and commuters would increase if these pathways were blocked or disrupted in any way.

We count our blessings for being able to experience the unique and precious ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE SANCTUARY that the PILP provides to the environment and the community. We enjoy watching the seasonal migrating birds, many of which, visiting bird watchers have told us are endangered. In addition we see endangered salmon jumping in the inlet. Thanks to the work that Peninsula Streams Society and community volunteers have done in the park, with a grant from View Royal, we anticipate this salmon population to increase. We know that environmental protection is top of mind to the Mayor and Council and hope you will recognize the need to protect and preserve this park. It cannot be safely exposed to the ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINANTS of a campsite with the noise and activity, as well as garbage, human waste and chemical toxins which will end up in the Inlet.

TSUNAMIS RISK is also a reality in this park! In fact you have put signs up in the park warning the public of this fact! It was only a few years ago that there was a sudden tsunami alert for View Royal residents on the Inlet. It happened in the middle of the night. The staff at our nearby fire station tried unsuccessfully to alert this neighbourhood and unfortunately their warnings never made it as far as Chancellor Ave and St. Giles Street! There were just too many houses to contact. Why would you have a community of homeless people living in the middle of a tsunami risk area? They don’t have the means to escape and it’s unlikely they have the necessary communication tools to be aware of such an immediate danger. You would knowingly be exposing them to the full force of a tsunami while they slept in their tents. What would be the town’s liability for such a decision?

It is DANGEROUS, COSTLY AND IMPRACTICAL to both the environment and community ( homeless and residential) for View Royal Mayor and Council to approve PILP for a homeless camp.

In light of the above, we ask that you recognize the small park size and the related risks associated with PILP as a homeless camp to both the homeless and local residents and amend the bylaw to remove Portage Inlet Linear Park from your “allowed” overnight camping.

Respectfully submitted
Deborrah and Jeffrey Bee
120 Chancellor Ave

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