Several dozen people were still at their tents Thursday morning as a bulldozer arrived with different vested workers as well as police to begin the first of what will be many scheduled sweeps and camp clean outs in the weeks to come, coinciding with the opening of the large COVID Cares Act funded Nevada Cares campus.
Ilya Arbatman said notices which had been handed out had indicated this first operation would take place on either the 17th or the 24th. Media reports quoting Reno city officials had indicated Wednesday or today, but many in the camp were still confused.
Arbatman arrived early Thursday with other volunteers to help those remaining at the camp along railroad tracks save some of their belongings and move before police and contracted workers forced them to do so. Some were simply moving to the other side of the bridge, which could face its own sweep in the coming days.
Screengrabs from a video by John L’Etoile from this morning.
Arbatman said one transgender individual without stable shelter had concerns over the new campus, which has been advertised as being for men and people identifying as couples, whereas the Our Place shelter, which is usually full, has been catering to women.
“That was concerning for some because for a greay area like that, I’m not really that optimistic that Volunteers of America [operating the new campus] is going to be able to handle it.”
He said based on the conversations he’s had “one to five percent” of people previously living in the tent city would utilize the campus. Others he said would need to “coerced to go there. There’s no a lot of excitement about that,” he added. He said they might face the option of going, getting arrested, or “scattering.”
A sign was put up in front of operations, saying “No Tresspassing, Active Construction Zone” under the overpass, which wasn’t initially enforced. He said by the end of the day he thought it would “all be rubble.”