Could another managed encampment help calm community safety concerns in Cambridge?

Could Cambridge be home to the region’s second managed encampment site?

It’s a prospect raised during a recent community safety town hall focused, in large part, on issues of addiction, mental health, and homelessness.

“We’re growing a community,” said one person now living at the hybrid indoor/outdoor shelter. “I think a sanctioned encampment here in Cambridge would work wonders, I really do.”

That comment, and others like it, now have some considering if that could indeed become a reality.

“It’s gone pretty well,” said Joe Mancini, director of The Working Centre, which manages the managed encampment at 1001 Erbs Road that has now been up and running a few months.

He said the site has already helped foster a sense of stability among its residents–largely, and simply, thanks to their now having their own cabins and a door that locks.

“That lock really does make a difference compared to tenting,” Mancini said. “[Residents] can now leave, lock their door, and then come back later.”

And yet, despite that newfound freedom to leave and return knowing their belongings will still be there when they do, Mancini noted that freedom also comes with a comfort to stay put.

“People are staying in that space a lot more than they were initially,” he said. “Once people feel comfortable in their environment, they don’t have this need to be going somewhere every five minutes.”

“It’s kind of like, you know, sometimes you’re living somewhere further away than you really want to be but it has other benefits.”

Mancini said those include having 24-hour meals, access to washrooms and showers, and access to on-site supports.

He said they also include the no visitor policy, despite some concerns having been raised about that previously.

“The no visitors policy is about kind of creating a smaller, safer environment for people to organize themselves and solidify their relationships on site, and to think through what their next steps are,” he said.

Meantime, as for whether a similarly styled managed encampment could find a home in Cambridge, Mancini suggested that would mostly be up to the region and the province.

“I think the resources can be found and I think groups are ready to operate these things because they are really helpful to the individuals.” he said. “You know, it’s still to be determined but you would think that resources could be found to develop more of these.”