Kamloops man takes back riverbank from homeless encampments

If it's not a manicured park, Kamloops riverbanks often feel that they are given over to people who don't have permanent housing. City bylaws allow for temporary encampments as long as they're removed each morning, but anyone who strolls along the beaches around Overlanders Bridge, Schubert Drive, Valleyview and downtown will say these camps are not temporary. They're scattered and entrenched. Richard Wiberg saw the beach across from his house change over the last few years from a public space to a frequent encampment. Two weeks ago, he decided it was time to make space for the public at large. He cleaned the beach himself, reminded campers to clean they're messes for other beachgoers and he installed several of his own signs with a simple message: Keep it clean for everyone. "Welcome back," he said as he greeted to women descending to the beach. "It's up to us to use our beach and to stick together because our waterfront has disappeared, where we can sit and relax, dogs can play, kids can play." Wiberg takes his dog, a German shepherd named Roxie, to the beach across from his Schubert Drive home almost daily. READ MORE: Elderly Kamloops fishers lose legal fight to fish for kokanee in nearby lake https://infotel.ca/newsitem/elderly-kamloops-fishers-lose-legal-fight-to-fish-for-kokanee-in-nearby-lake/it106055 Before it was cleaned up, the small park might have had needles, food wrappers, clothes and other litter strewn about, but now Wiberg doesn't have to worry about Roxie getting into the garbage. Last week, he was stung by more than a dozen bees while dealing with litter but it hasn't deterred him. He said it isn't just for him but for the beachgoers throughout the neighbourhood, along Schubert Drive near Arthur Hatton Elementary. Despite the bylaw that requires camps to be removed daily, it's not a rule that's heavily enforced. Some residents feel that the entrenched camps make public spaces feel they belong to strangers. Wiberg's efforts haven't gone unnoticed by neighbours in the area, as they venture down to the beach on a hot August morning. "I feel like I'm imposing on someone else's space. I generally don't have a problem with the camps as long as it's respectful, but it takes away from this being a public spot," Gypsy Aydon said as she sat in the shade near the water's edge. "It's nice to see nice clean, open, uninhabited spaces." She said her concern was less about safety and more about the discomfort of stumbling into someone else's makeshift home. She estimated that it's been over the past five years that scattered encampments along the North Thompson have taken up more space. READ MORE: iN VIDEO: Paddlewheeler Wanda Sue spotted on South Thompson river in Kamloops https://infotel.ca/newsitem/in-video-paddlewheeler-wanda-sue-spotted-on-river-in-kamloops/it106049 Another resident, Barry Stabeck, was throwing a stick into the water for his two dogs Tuesday morning. He walks there everyday, but said he hasn't seen it in such a clean and safe state for years. He wasn't aware of who installed the new signs, but said he was grateful for such a vast improvement. Others came and went and expressed some surprise that the beach was clean. Some individual camps are little more than a tent in the bush, while others are dug into the riverbank with trees chopped and their wood used to create makeshift walls. Wiberg's signs are meant to fend off permanency to the camps and welcome nearby residents the the river shore again. One says no tents allowed, another to pack out what's packed in and at least two signs tell pet owners to clean up after their dogs. It's far from one of the most common green spaces along Kamloops riverbanks for homeless encampments, but now that the signs are up Wiberg expects he and the neighbourhood will maintain it to deter future camps from settling in. Last year, there were at least 312 homeless people counted in the city, more than double the currently available shelter space. To contact a reporter for this story, email Levi Landry mailto:llandry@infonews.ca  or call 250-819-3723 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter .