Photo by Vince Fedoroff
IN COMPLIANCE – Mark Bowers' Occupy Whitehorse camper has moved off White Pass and Yukon Route property and is now in the Yukon government administration building parking lot. White Pass is refusing comment on its eviction notice.
Occupy Whitehorse has moved to the parking lot outside the Yukon legislature to comply with the White Pass and Yukon Route's eviction letter.
Occupy Whitehorse has moved to the parking lot outside the Yukon legislature to comply with the White Pass and Yukon Route's eviction letter.
Mark Bowers isn't happy about it.
Bowers, the local movement's only tent city resident, was hand-delivered the letter Tuesday morning. It said he had 48 hours to leave the company's property before further action is taken.
The other trailer on White Pass property, which belongs to Kevin Sweeney, was still parked on the legislative lawn this morning.
Bowers told the Star this morning that yesterday, he talked to Jaime Bricker (who says she isn't authorized to talk to the media), the Director of Contracts and Land Management for White Pass. She told Bowers the tents are not on eviction notice.
It's just Bowers' camper and Sweeney's trailer which are the problem.
Bowers proposed to Bricker that White Pass write a letter to Pemier Darrell Pasloski urging the government to deal with the tent city and homelessness issue quickly.
"I said, ‘when you write that letter on company letterhead, I'll move my camper out of here right away,' ” he said.
Bricker thought that was a good idea, but when she called the company's Toronto offices, they declined.
"Once again, they are putting profit and liability above people,” said Bowers.
He said his message to White Pass today is just one word: shame.
Helen Hollywood, known as the "unofficial mayor” of tent city, was offered a room at the Chilkoot Hotel earlier this week but declined, Pat Living, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Services (HSS), confirmed this morning.
Hollywood told the Star Wednesday she feels healthy and comfortable in her tent. She vows to live in tent city as long as she can.
HSS staff made another offer to a tent city resident this week, which was also declined.
Living explained that staff have been offering assistance wherever they could to tent city residents during the summer and fall, whether that means finding them housing or helping them move if they found their own accommodation.
White Pass will not comment on its eviction notice nor what its plans are to take further action, if needed.
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Heather Kerr on Nov 11, 2011 at 2:56 am
Camper, truck, trailer one is doing quite well if they have that as one of there assets! Sounds like WP has been very fair, I would have towed. Enough is enough, you can only be nice for so long!! They say there quite comfortable still in there tents and don't want assistance, so why not move them to Robert Service campground and assist them there. They want to camp, wait till winter really sets in, they would have wished they took that assistance from the government. Same problem everywhere, they want to live in a castle, I did too but I had to work hard and still working hard to live in my castle!!
So come on, they say at your job you have to work as a team player with everyone to success, so work as a team with government and the local businesses, they are trying to help. Castles are a dream and everyone can do it, hard work and choices, hand outs are good, but you have too do it yourself too. If everyone expected a hand out from the gov. we would be broke cause of the taxes!!
It all comes down to choices............................