Abatement notices go up at Davis Park, bringing relief to many Mountain View residents

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - On Friday morning, city crews spread out around the homeless camp at Davis Park and the snow dump across the street, posting notices that the camp would be abated on June 17.

Mountain View Community Council President Phil Cannon watched as they hammered the notices into nearby trees. Cannon said the LaFrance administration attended a community council meeting earlier in the week to announce their plans.

“We had a council meeting on Wednesday and at that meeting, we had everything from, ‘I can’t believe you are doing this to these people,’ to people standing up and thanking the administration for finally doing it,” Cannon said.

Overall, Cannon said people are mostly feeling relief that the years-long homeless camp will be going away and the public will be able to recreate in the park again.

He noted the camp is smaller than it was in the fall and credited outreach efforts that have helped get people into shelter or housing.

“ I think the city has been responsive to do a slow, measured approach, trying to do a lot of outreach and helping people get into better circumstances rather than just moving people around,” he said.

But where people will go is still a concern.

Long-time Mountain View resident Tonette Lang-Brown was thrilled to hear the abatement notices had gone up, but wondered if people would end up moving back into the neighborhood.

“I am happy to hear there is a date that there’s going to be some kind of abatement happening, and I just hope there is ultimately a more permanent solution to the problem,” she said. “I don’t have any answers, but I just know we’ve been greatly affected, and the last couple of years has just been a nightmare.”

The city has said it will continue outreach efforts to link people to shelters that right now are mostly full. The plan is to use more than $5 million in federal funds to get people currently in shelters into more permanent housing and, in the process, free up shelter beds.

It’s also pledging to increase police patrols in Mountain View to help prevent people from returning to camp at the park or in the neighborhood.

Cannon said he felt confident there are options for people, but added “I don’t know that that means people will accept the options that are there.”

“It’s really unfortunate that it’s hard for some people,” he said, “but it’s time and I think that overall, there’s a sense that we are grateful that it’s being done.”

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