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If the Quebec Ministry of Transport carries out its plan to dismantle a homeless encampment on Notre-Dame Street this week, it will be the sixth time that Devint Vézina has been displaced in the last two years.

Sitting among the tents lining the Eastern artery on Monday, Vézina could only shake his head as he recalled the various times he was forced to pack up and leave.

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Fed up and defiant, he urged authorities to find a better approach.

“Why can’t they give us a hand, listen to us, find a solution? » » asked Vézina, 40 years old. “Instead, they push us around. »

Although few people were at the camp Monday, those present said about 100 people had spent the night there in recent months, ranging in age from 18 to a man in his 80s.

The camp is mainly spread over three groups of tents along Notre-Dame Street. In addition to the tents on site, there is also a buildup of scrap metal and materials, with overflowing recycling bins and trash bags piling up.

The Department of Transportation, which owns the land, says it warned people last week that they had to leave the area by November 21. A notice stapled to a tree Monday warned of an eviction and a “full cleanout” of the space on Thursday.

“Please note that all abandoned goods will be discarded,” it reads.

In an interview, a spokesperson for the ministry indicated that it is responding to a request from the City given that the encampment goes against the regulations of the Mercier—Hochelaga—Maisonneuve borough.

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Spokesman Gilles Payer said people living in the encampment received notices last Friday and were told why they had to leave.

He said the department was aware of what he described as hazardous materials in the camps, such as propane tanks, and that the dismantling was partly to keep people safe.

“It’s not a safe place to live,” Payer said. “We had a warm fall, but we know winter can come suddenly. If people start making fires to keep warm, it could be catastrophic.

The city of Montreal did not return a request for comment before deadline Monday.

The city has said in the past that it cannot tolerate camps because they present a security risk and it would prefer to persuade people to stay in shelters, where there is monitoring and access to services.

The grassy area along Notre-Dame Street was the site of another large encampment in 2020 which was dismantled after a a fire broke out and almost spread to a propane tank. Since then, tents have come and gone in the area, usually removed as the winter cold arrives.

Guylain Levasseur, who lived in the encampment four years ago, said Monday he fears this week’s dismantling shows how the city and provincial government have failed to make progress in the fight against homelessness since then.

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He also lamented the fact that people often lose their personal belongings when authorities decide to empty the camps, emphasizing how devastating it can be to lose what few possessions you have when you are homeless.

“They talk about expulsions, but not solutions. There are never solutions,” said Levasseur, 59. “The shelters are already full, so I don’t know what miracle they are expecting: it seems like they are deporting people for the sake of evicting them.

At the encampment Monday, Vézina said he wasn’t sure how people would react Thursday if crews came to clear the space. Others living there spoke of a meeting Monday evening to discuss the eviction notice and the options they have.

The Department of Transport said police would be on site during the dismantling to ensure order was maintained, and teams of social workers would also be present to assist with the transition.

“I will stay in my tent,” Vézina said. “They can come for me, but I’m going to oppose it to the end.”

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