The community in and around Abbotsford has been relentlessly rallying to shut down the two homeless encampments in the area for years. The efforts have finally yielded results as the province has shut down the encampment on Cole Road and is moving ahead to close the second encampment at Whatcom Road.

For about three years, homeless shelters sprang up in different areas in Abbotsford, with two prominent areas becoming the centre of attention. Originally set up as rest areas by the province, both the Whatcom Road and Cole Road locations became a source of discomfort for residents, an eyesore, and a danger to the community.

For years, the two locations loomed over the residents as a bold sign of things gone wrong. Despite multiple complaints of vandalism, feces, urination on doors, garbage, and theft, it took authorities a very long time to act on the problem brewing on their front lawn. In addition to these two, there are similar encampments at Peardonville Road and the McCallum Road/King Road interchange.

The Whatcom Road site was notoriously famous for the high number of police calls (200+ in the past year), including a fatal shooting on March 23, 2026, targeting a 69-year-old resident. Several fires were reported at the site. The Cole Road site, too, was associated with police incidents, including fire hazards, threats, and assault, with 17 incidents reported in 2024 and 10 between 2025 and April 2026.

The City of Abbotsford could not deal with the situation because the camp was on provincial land where city bylaws did not apply, restricting the city’s direct authority. It took multiple appeals from residents and demonstrations from the general public over three years to get the authorities to finally eliminate the hazard, which should not have been there in the first place. The City of Abbotsford has spent $30,000 on cleanup efforts at these encampments, and the work is still far from over.

It is reported that the homeless individuals from the sites are being moved to provincial stable housing and shelters, but it is only a matter of time before new encampments spring up in newer areas. Polite Canada has been vocal about the issues concerning Canadians as they go about their daily lives and welcomes the first step of removing the unauthorized encampments that should not have been there.

There are serious lapses at the provincial, city, and administration level that fail to prevent similar issues. At Polite Canada, we will continue our efforts to raise issues that are important to all Canadians and hope that authorities will take action on important matters before it is too little, too late.