Man's surprise as people living in tents take over his front garden

30 September 2023 , 05:11

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An encampment is sprawling through a man's property (Image: CBS News)

One man was left shocked after his front garden was overrun by a homeless encampment.

Minneapolis resident Duylinh Nguyen first raised concerns about the shock crowd that appeared on his property three years ago.

Dylinh's front garden is littered with junk and tents filled with people living in them. After the city cleared out the Hiwatha encampment, a nearby homeless population's dwelling, people moved onto his property rather abruptly. At first, police would help Dylinh in clearing out the pop-up living space, but this year, they've stopped coming to intervene.

After WCCO, a local CBS station, called city officials, they referred Dylinh to contact an encampment specialist. However, Dylinh blames drug addiction, rather than a housing crisis, for this grim situation.

Duylinh Nguyen's property became over run with a homeless population (CBS News)

Dylinh told CBS: "I think we all know this is not a housing issue. It's an addiction issue. I hope that these people can get the help that they need."

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A former city official agreed with Dylinh's sentiments. According to Maren Hardy, who worked as a homeless response coordinator for the city, said: "It's 100% an addiction issue. This is not a homeless issue, they are homeless because of their addiction."

He and the neighbours worry about their safety (CBS News)

She emphasised her belief that the city is "failing" and not properly speaking with community leaders. As the issue continues to persist, Dylinh's and his neighbours are only getting more worried. In fact, they believe their safety is at risk as he describes the trash and needles spread across the ground. He claims that he's seen videos of open drug dealing and prostitution occurring on the property.

They've found needles and junk throughout the property (CBS News)

Neighbors are also worried that if they come forward or intervene they may face harsh retaliation from the 'residents' of the encampment. So, instead, they keep their distance, but feel like hostages in their own homes. As of right now, there's no clear solution, but Maren suggests that the city focus on reviving the drug court and putting more resources into treatment and recovery for addicts.

City officials have stopped running to his aid (CBS News)

Dylinh pled: "We have to have some kind of solution. Those people don't deserve to live in those types of conditions."

According to Fortune, the main housing initiative for the city comes from the Itasca Project, "an alliance of the business, philanthropic and public sectors in the region pushing for at least 18,000 new housing units per year through 2030".

Alex West