Whitehorse tent city residents to be kicked out

The residents of Whitehorse's tent city are being kicked out.

Thetent citystartedlong before the Occupy movements acrossCanada, and now the protesters who have camped out on the Yukon legislature's lawn since the summer were served eviction notices on Tuesday. They have been given 48 hours to leave the site.

The campers have been protesting the lack of affordable housing in the territory. They were joined recently by Mark Bowers, a Whitehorse resident who brought the global Occupy movement to Yukon.

Bowers haddecided earlier to leave because of winter, but now said he might stay to challenge the eviction.

Two signs have now gone up identifying the land as White Pass land. On Tuesday, campers next to the narrow gauge railroad tracks got an eviction notice from the White Pass and Yukon Routerailroad which owns the land.

The eviction notice, addressed 'Dear occupant,' states that violence, vandalism, nudity, destruction of property and littering at the sitehave made for a public nuisance.

White Pass seniorvice-president Michael Brandt said the company has given the tent city residents plenty of time, but with winter on the way, the company is worried about liability.

But Bowers said the notice seems heartless.

"These folks have no housing and have nowhere to go," he said.

The camp is just outside NDP Opposition Leader Liz Hansons office.

"It seems ironic they would wait until it is getting to be deep and cold winter before even beginning to suggest they are going to move people off,"Hanson said.

Hanson said some of the tents are pitched on Yukon government land, and the railway eviction would not apply.

"I'm going to move 15 feet over; I'll be off White Pass property," said Kevin Sweeney, one of the protesters. "They'veput up withit for the whole summer. They've been very good about it.

"I took a stance like this because if I don't, I'm going to have to leave my kids here," he added."With thepopulation of the whole Yukon at 33,000, and you can't house them? Come on, something's up. Something's wrong."

Government officials have offered the campers rooms atlocal hotels, but say they have no plans to force them to move.