A person experiencing homelessness takes a moment on a bench Thursday as city workers move belongings at Seminary Park. Staff photo by Rich Janzaruk
A city employee clears out a tent Thursday near the street at Seminary Park. Staff photo by Rich Janzaruk
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When Bloomington officials didn’t clear the tents and people from Seminary Park this past Monday as posted, advocates for people experiencing homelessness thought the mayor might have experienced a change of heart and was possibly offering a reprieve.
There was a temporary solution in the works, a warehouse that might be able to serve as a safe indoor space for people not interested is staying at traditional shelters, people who would rather stay outside in the cold than be supervised, handed rules to follow or told what to do.
But Thursday afternoon, city workers and police went to the park. A Bloomington Police Department SUV blocked southbound traffic on College Avenue at Second Street after the city ordered all items removed from the right-of-way on the edge of the park by 4 p.m.
People experiencing homelessness and their supporters carried dilapidated tents and bags of personal belongings away from the street and down into the park to comply with the order. Men wearing hazardous material protective suits gathered items left after the deadline and threw them into a city garbage truck.
At the same time, Perry Township Trustee Dan Combs was attending an online meeting with other stakeholders in the challenge to address the city’s growing homeless population — the mayor was there as well — when he got a text message about the right-of-way clearance.
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