DC councilwoman calls for delay in McPherson Square homeless camp clearing
Rachel Schilke
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A Washington, D.C., councilwoman called for a delay in the clearing of a homeless encampment at McPherson Square.
The National Park Service moved its planned clearing from mid-April to Feb. 15, which D.C. Councilwoman Brianne Nadeau (D) said does not provide “residents” enough time to find alternative housing options.
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“Some of them arrived there after being pushed out of other encampments cleared by the city,” Nadeau said in a statement. “Even those who have obtained vouchers are highly unlikely to be able to move into new housing before they are forcibly evicted on February 15.”
Nadeau said she has asked Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office and the National Park Service to delay action until the original date in April, as well as asking both organizations to devote resources to help homeless people relocate to “safe, permanent housing.”
“Every time the government does this, we break down the little trust we have managed to build with people who are living on the street,” Nadeau said. “After years and decades of false promises of help, it is no wonder that unhoused residents do not trust city workers and social workers who tell them we have a home for them.”
As McPherson Square is on federal land, the National Park Service is in charge of clearing it but must rely on D.C. officials to provide aid, such as housing vouchers. NPS recently cleared a similar encampment at Scott Circle. That led to an increase in residents at the McPherson Square camp.
Officials said that out of the McPherson Square camp’s approximately 70 residents, 15 have been matched with housing options and haven’t moved in, and 50 have not engaged with the city’s housing services. In fiscal 2022, D.C. funded 2,400 housing vouchers but only used a quarter of them, according to Street Sense.
A letter signaling the clearing date change cited “high levels of illegal drug and other criminal activity.” The letter said those things prevent social workers from meeting with residents, per Axios.
However, D.C. officials were unable to provide “specific examples of encampment residents endangering service providers or clinicians,” per a Washington Post report.
Christy Respress with Pathways to Housing DC, an organization that provides housing resources, told Axios that caseworkers have not had any safety issues while working at the camp.
Nadeau is not the only council member speaking up on the issue. Councilman Robert White (D) said he visited McPherson Square last week to speak with residents who were forced out of other camps or have been waiting on housing for years.
He said that after talking with people, he does not see what organizations are reporting. If the clearing is happening next week, he said there should be outreach workers on the ground now.
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“People do not believe the government or these organizations are here to help,” White said. “Of course, they are not eager to sign up on another list. These folks need to believe that we’re actually going to show up and help. They are ready for housing, they are begging for housing, and saying they don’t know what’s going to happen if they don’t have housing when this closes.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to Pathways for Housing DC and the Metropolitan Police Department for comments on the clearing.