BLOOMINGTON — The people who live in a South Bloomington homeless camp were told they had seven days to pack up everything and leave while winter intensified. The campers will get to stay through the colder months and Monroe County will now give people more time to vacate.
Monroe County Commissioners decided during Thursday's meeting to extend the time unhoused people must leave county-owned land after a posted eviction notice from seven days to 30 days. Additionally, the county will not attempt to clear any camps until March 2.
Residents of the unhoused camp between Switchyard Park and RCA Community Park were originally told through posted notices on Dec. 1 that they had to clear the property by Dec. 7. Monroe County pushed the eviction date back to Dec. 15 after community pushback and eventually delayed the camp clearout 'indefinitely.'
Shelbie Porteroff showed up to commissioners' meetings throughout December to let them know her anger about the situation. She has spent the past year going into unhoused communities and talking with them about their struggles.
"Once the unhoused status is in place, dignity is almost always taken away from those folks," Porteroff said. "Talk to people who are unhoused and treat your unhoused community members like they are actually community members."
Porteroff is relieved that Bloomington's unhoused no longer have to worry about finding another home and community on top of their existing issues.
"Is there enough propane to get through the cold? Have they collected enough layers to get through the season? Are their socks wet? Do they have a leak?" Porteroff listed. "All of these issues are at the forefront in the winter, and the scare of an eviction on top of it was really paralyzing for a lot of people."
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Taj Simmons the In Your Community reporter for Monroe and Morgan counties. He joined WRTV in August of 2023. The Oakland, CA native is not a Hoosier by birth, but is excited to learn all about the area and tell the stories of the people who make this state feel like home. Share your story ideas and important issues with Taj by emailing him at taj.simmons@wrtv.com.
