Liz, who had initially been at the Wells Ave. underpass, says she thinks it’s five times and counting for her to be swept since the Nevada Cares Campus opened in mid May. She’s now staying right by the compound, and was moved Wednesday from a sidewalk area to a nearby dirt patch. She’s been hoping to get into the new Washoe County run safe camp area at the compound, but it’s been a drip of few admissions every day for that section. She’s suspicious of the massive sprung structure where hundreds of people are sleeping in bunk beds, not wanting to get a tour or fill out paperwork for that.
“We’re looking at three months out,” she says of her understanding of when she might be able to get into the safe camp, with a full list of people having been promised spots already to fill the 44 tents. She said she has post traumatic stress from previous experiences at crowded shelters, including being thrown from a top bunk and injuring herself, and does not want to repeat that.
“Everybody’s convinced this is the perfect solution, but it’s not,” she said. “There’s fewer and fewer places for us to go,” she said of the unhoused, “and some of us don’t do well with large amounts of people.”
People have been helping Liz and other unhoused with water during hot days.
Earlier this week, one anti sweeps advocate wrote to journalists he felt “disappointed and exasperated and a bit betrayed,” after meetings with Reno officials which started after the conclusion of an Occupy style protest at Believe Plaza. Four of them are facing a court date on July 29th after pleading not guilty in community court. Meanwhile, volunteers have set up a hydration station with a sign up sheet at Believe Plaza where several unhoused people congregate on the grass during the day.
According to shared emails, as part of an ongoing sweeps calendar, Zone 7 (Galletti Way to the E. 2nd Street Bridge) and Zone 11 (N. Edison Way to S. McCarran Blvd) have been targeted for June 29th.
“Myself and others in my group sincerely do want to work with the City, but, I have to say, our collaboration so far has been deeply disappointing,” was what advocate Ilya Arbatman who was outside the compound on Wednesday wrote back to city officials. “Please, respond to this question honestly: what is the rush? Why do you have to sweep these remaining zones immediately? Whose timetable is this, and what circumstances is it determined by?”