State police clearing out Dale City homeless camp

By the end of this week, more than 80 individuals in Woodbridge will literally have nowhere to call home.

On Thursday morning, Virginia State Police are closing down a long-time homeless campsite located near the Dale Boulevard exit off Interstate 95 for safety and legal reasons. In an email sent Wednesday, Virginia Department of Transportation spokeswoman Jennifer McCord stated that residents will have an hour to move their belongings off that property once police arrive.

Technically, these residents have been trespassing on state property, stated McCord. And because of the nature of the camp setup, McCord said it’s potentially dangerous for both campsite residents and the motorists on the interstate.

“This is a difficult situation and while we are sympathetic to anyone who is homeless, VDOT cannot allow these shelters on its right of way,” stated McCord.

Approximately 35 people are living at the site, said Bonnie Schrader, director of the Drop-In Center program at the nearby winter shelter. To make matters worse, another 46 single adults are officially outdoors after Thursday when the nearby winter shelter closes for the season.

“That’s 80 something people that this is affecting,” said Schrader. “The stress levels are high [at the center].”

Schrader said the shelter has received nothing in writing about this decision and found out just a few days ago that the camp would be going away. According to McCord, state troopers have notified campers every night for at least the past week that they must relocate by Thursday.

VDOT has also recently erected no trespassing signs on the property. McCord stated that once residents leave, a VDOT contractor will clean the area, which she called “heavily littered.”

Schrader said it will be difficult to find a new home for these people because much of the land they could go to will now be off limits. Transporting their personal belongings will be tough, as well, said Schrader. Some churches have donated generators to several of these people, an item difficult to lug around when you have no idea where you’re going.

“It’s a mess,” Schrader said. “They don’t know what to do, they don’t know where to go. It’s like they are trying to herd them all up.”

There is a nearby homeless camp located behind the K-Mart in Dale City where one person has already moved, said Volunteers of America Hilda Barg Homeless Prevention Center Director Gayle Sanders. However, that land is slated for the development of the American Wartime Museum, which could open as early as 2014.

Sanders said she has had conversations with winter shelter staff about taking in some of these people. Unfortunately, she has just one open bed in her men’s dormitory area. Ditto for the Action in Community Through Service homeless shelter in Dumfries.

A few weeks ago, high winds caused a brush fire in the area that forced the closure of I-95 for several hours. County fire officials determined the source of the blaze came from the homeless camp next to the interstate.

McCord said the fire did not play a role in the decision to close the camps, and VDOT is usually not in the business of “enforcing folks to vacate.” However, input from both the community and VDOT employees who worked in that area ultimately led them to take action.

McCord said there was also a fence that bordered the highway that had been partially torn down, which presented another safety issue for and motorists.

“It was becoming more evident, because of [the lack of] foliage this winter, that there were quite a few more folks out there [this year],” said McCord.

Staff writer Kipp Hanley can be reached at 703-530-3904.