Hastings sidewalk vendor clear-out hurting homeless: advocate

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Advocates for the homeless in the Downtown Eastside say dozens of people are being displaced, even woken up from sleeping on the ground, and forced elsewhere.

The claim come after the city increased its effort to curb illegal sidewalk sales on Hastings Street by relocating sellers to a new sanctioned market across the street.

Doug King, a lawyer with Pivot Legal Society, said as softly as it may be going, it is still enforcement and people are being displaced.

“Enforcement rests with the city government, but the provincial government has not increased the welfare rates, the disability rates, for many, many years now. Obviously the price of living in Vancouver now is skyrocketing and these people are being completely pushed out of the place where they live,” King said.

Councillor Geoff Meggs said the city has been concerned for a long time about that block of Hastings.

“We’ve been trying to balance a court decision that street vending had to be allowed with the need for people to be able to use the sidewalk,” Meggs said.

“We’ve been doing everything we can to make sure that legitimate street vendors have lots of access to customers and can supplement their income, but we do want the sidewalk to be used for it’s appropriate purpose and we want to be able to be sure that there is some possibility of sorting out stolen goods from other goods.”

Meggs said the city has taken a careful approach and worked with community groups on how street vending could be organized.

He said police have been supportive and compassionate.

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