Stating that the land is contaminated and potentially leaking dangerous chemicals, the city of Chattanooga cleared a homeless camp at the corner of 12th and Peeples streets on Wednesday that officials estimate was occupied by about 30 people.
The camp sat on a vacant, concrete pad that borders a sanctioned, fenced homeless camp the city recently established off Peeples Street.
Sam Wolfe, the director of Chattanooga’s Office of Homelessness and Supportive Housing, explained the decision in a phone interview Wednesday, stating that the city learned from residents at its sanctioned encampment that some people had broken into the camp property and stolen a few items.
Nearby business owners also notified the city about the camp. When it set up the sanctioned encampment, Wolfe said, the city committed, at the request of businesses, to ensuring no one camped on the nearby concrete pad, which he said is on property owned by the city.
The city gave residents living on the concrete pad a two-week notice, he said, and employees have repeatedly returned to the camp to ensure that message was clear. During that time, the number of people living on the pad increased. When staff members first went to the property, Wolfe said, there were about eight to 10 people, but over the past few days it grew to around 30.