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![\"Ruth](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4413233_web1_260721-Balmoral-Encamp--.jpg\")
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Ruth Bonneville \/ Free Press<\/p>\n
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Marvin Sharp stands near an encampment on the property of Pen-Eve Apartments at 35 Balmoral St. Sharp questions why the burden of removing encampments and cleaning up their mess has fallen on private property owners.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The order requires the property to be cleaned by July 18 and warns the city could begin remediation as early as July 19, with the cost being added to the property taxes.<\/p>\n
Sharp said he didn\u2019t receive the letter until July 17. As of Monday, the city had not started cleanup work, he said, and he has since filed an appeal.<\/p>\n
While he said he sympathizes with the people living in the encampment, Sharp said private landlords are not responsible for solving the homeless crisis.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s for the government and the city and those officials to solve,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s not my problem to solve.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sharp said he\u2019s spoken with Winnipeg police and officials at Balmoral Hall School, which cleared brush along its riverfront property in 2020 to discourage encampments.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not my problem to solve.\u201d<\/p>\n
The encampment behind Sharp\u2019s building extends onto neighbouring properties, including 29 Balmoral St., a complex owned by the provincial government.<\/p>\n
A city spokesperson said Tuesday that they work directly with property owners at each step of compliance and enforcement,\u201cto help guide actions that will resolve violations.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe encourage the property owner to continue working with the officer leading the enforcement and to reach out to the Winnipeg Police Service non-emergency line for assistance with unauthorized persons trespassing on their property,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n
The city says complaints about possible Neighbourhood Liveability Bylaw violations are typically made through 311 and investigated by city inspectors, who document conditions such as tents, garbage and abandoned property.<\/p>\n
When a violation is found, property owners may receive a compliance order outlining the required cleanup and a deadline for compliance.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Ruth Bonneville \/ Free Press<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Sharp says people living in the encampments cut through fencing beneath the property\u2019s parking garage and lit fires that caused significant structural damage, leaving part of the garage unstable and requiring demolition and reconstruction.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n They added that its 24-hour mobile outreach service is typically sent first to active encampments to offer supports, referrals and voluntary relocation options.<\/p>\n Sharp said he\u2019s spoken to police in the past, but hasn\u2019t since receiving the letter this week.<\/p>\n He also doesn\u2019t believe police can fix the problem.<\/p>\n Because they\u2019re going to go down there, they\u2019re going to tell these people to move across this imaginary line, you know, 10 feet over,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd then (the police) are going to leave and (the encampment residents) are going to go right back.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is dumb. This is not going to do anything. It\u2019s just a stupid waste of time.\u201d<\/p>\n Instead, he said, the city would be forcing everyone into a costly cycle of enforcement and cleanup.<\/p>\n \u201cWe would just go through this game,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not just the cost of us going down there. It\u2019s the taxpayer money sending the police down there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis is dumb. This is not going to do anything. It\u2019s just a stupid waste of time.\u201d<\/p>\n Sherri Rollins, who represents the area on city council, wonders who will receive a compliance order next.<\/p>\n She said it is \u201cbeyond ironic\u201d that orders are being issued now.<\/p>\n \u201cAre all of my daycares also going to get orders?\u201d Rollins said. \u201cBecause every Monday, they have to clean up the diapers that people have gone through. This is the state of public safety in the city. What\u2019s up, is down. And what\u2019s down, is up. This property owner is apoplectic? Angry? No kidding.\u201d<\/p>\n Rollins said whether daycare operators or property managers are told they need to clear away encampments or be fined, neither has the personal protective equipment required to clean up needles and human feces.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to get really real, and the impact on every single industry that is happening in this city because of the amount of drug-dependent use in public spaces, that is trespassing onto private property,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t Rollins wants a second emergency council meeting on the matter because she said the meeting that was held at the end of June accomplished little.<\/p>\n \u201cThe city is in crisis,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Sharp said the existence of the homeless camp has delayed repairs to the riverside parking lot at the property.<\/p>\n \u201cWe actually had construction people and we were ready to go. Then suddenly, all of the construction guys said they\u2019re not going back there because they were concerned for their safety and for their equipment. So that caused a huge problem.\u201d<\/p>\n Adding to his frustration, Sharp said tenants have complained about noise from the squatters, but his biggest concern is the risk of fire breaking out. He said people have set up camp in an opening beneath the concrete parking lot, which was caused by erosion, and several fires have been set in that location.<\/p>\n scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Scott Billeck Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade\u2019s worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024.\u00a0 Read more about Scott<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Scott produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n
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