City Creek Trail encampment cleared, but homeless have no where to go

The Pocatello Police led a team to clear a homeless encampment up City Creek Trail last weekend. Pocatello hikers are happy, but where will these people go?

Homelessness hovers around 2,000 people in Idaho over the past six years. Most of the shelters are at full capacity or close to it. Aid for Friends is among the only shelter in Bannock County that accepts everyone. They say homelessness is a statewide problem that should be looked into.

“It’s throughout the state and I think we’re seeing it at a nationwide experience. It’s not just something that’s happening in Pocatello,” executive director for Aid for Friends, B.J. Stensland said.

Homelessness increased for the second year in a row across the U.S. according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development. About 553,000 people nationwide don’t have a place to sleep as of 2018.

“People will try and stay wherever they can and if it’s not at that location, they do find others. So, it’s really hard to clear out the problem without having a solution with safe secure shelter,” Stensland said.

Fortunately, Aid for Friends will be moving into a new facility allowing them to house more people. However, until then homeless are left to fend for themselves if they are unable to find a place to live.