The Bend Humanity Coalition, a non-profit based in Bend, has called for the City of Bend to close and clear the homeless camp on Hunnell Road in Bend. On Sunday, the camp was the target of a drive-by shooting, according to local law enforcement.
“The homeless camp on and near Hunnell Road in Bend has long been dangerous to those who live in the camp and people in the nearby area. The drive-by shooting targeting the camp Sunday demonstrates the urgency of the situation. The city has the authority to clear dangerous and unhealthy encampments on city rights of way. It is clear that the camp on Hunnell Road meets those criteria and the city should initiate the process of clearing the camp immediately, for the safety of those who live in the camp and others in the Bend community. We can’t afford to lose more lives on Hunnell Road,” said Jeff Eager, a spokesperson for the Bend Humanity Coalition.
In June 2021, the City of Bend adopted Administrative Policy 2021-2, which provides that the city may clear homeless camps on city rights of way when it deems them hazardous or a threat to public health. The city used the policy, a link to which follows, to clear an encampment on Emerson Street in Bend several months ago: https://www.bendoregon.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/49986/637583898709930000
More information about the Bend Humanity Coalition can be found at the organization’s website: www.bendhumanitycoalition.org.
