It’s been three months since the City of Lansing filed a lawsuit against two property owners for permitting a homeless encampment's existence on their properties.
Lansing residents criticized the city's plan to remove the encampment, located on private property next to Dietrich Park.
In August, Ingham County Judge Rosemarie Aquilina ruled that the property owners must provide residents with portable restrooms. This was met with disapproval from the property owners, advocacy groups and residents of the encampment. They felt the city should be responsible for supplying the restrooms.
In September, Aquilina toured the encampment and ordered it to be dismantled in 60 days, by November 14.
She cited public health and safety concerns as reasons for ordering its removal, but also expressed concern about where the encampment’s residents would end up.
She said as the encampment was dismantled, the city of Lansing needed to find places for the residents to live, and provide portable restrooms in the meantime.
Weekly hearings about the encampment are still ongoing.
Mark Kerrins, co-owner of 113 W. Michigan LLC of Jackson, one of the initial properties sued said he’s been dismissed from the lawsuit.
That leaves Nick Yono, owner of JAJ Property LLC of West Bloomfield Township as the remaining defendant. His property housed most of the people living in the encampment—some have lived there for years.
The estimated number of residents living in the encampment ranges from around 50 to 70 people. WKAR reported in September around a third of residents left after the court order.
Encampment resident Kit Cushman said those currently living there "truly have nowhere else to go."
She said she believes that the city and other organizations are working to find housing for all residents, but that's difficult to do in two months.
"The city and housing organizations have all realized that 60 days to house 60 people is impossible in our current system," Cushman said.
She said both are reaching out to people who have the lived experience of being homeless to try and resolve the issue.
"At this point the city has no other choice but to come to the people that are suffering with this problem to try to fix it."
A Lansing spokesperson says 37 people connected encampment have begun to receive assistance from the city or partner organizations to be relocated.