Is establishing a "primitive camping" site on a city-owned park the precursor to a full-fledged homeless encampment? One Florida city council will explore the notion of creating the Community Service of "primitive campsites" at a nature park within their city limits.
On the agenda for the August 21, 2019 Tavares, Florida city council meeting is agenda item number 12 :
"To explore the idea of creating primitive campsites at the Tavares Nature Park"
According to the meeting packet detail, the grant used to purchase the land for the park does allow for primitive camping.
Among the many issues city council will consider is the concern of attracting a large homeless population, as well as potential fire hazards, trash accumulation and human waste disposal.
"Issues to Consider – Staff contacted the Florida State Parks organization and the local parks that offer primitive camping in the region to ascertain what issues they have come across and offer a highlight of their responses:
o All of the State Parks that offer primitive camping are monitored with park rangers and charge a small fee for the campsites.
o Lake Louisa Park Manager stated their biggest issue is from campers cutting down trees and other brush to use for firewood.
o Fear of attracting a large homeless population was the reason that Lake Griffin State Park in Leesburg did not create primitive campsites.
o The biggest issue regarding primitive campsites in both the Lower Wekiva Preserve and Rock Springs Run Reserve State Parks is the trash that sometimes get left behind and outsiders using the primitive toilet facilities as they canoe or paddle through the areas.
o Several rangers mentioned that all their sites are equipped with food lockers as a protection against bears and other wildlife.
o The Wekiva River Basin State Parks Manager did mention that bears are a concern, however they have more issues with bears in their developed campsites verses the primitive ones because those sites have more food."
The City of Tavares is located in Lake County, Florida.
County Examiner recently published Florida Department of Health statistics on the outbreak of hepatitis A, including risk factors such as drug use (both injection and non-injection drugs), identifying as men who have sex with men, and recently experiencing homelessness.
With the Department reporting 98 cases of hepatitis A in Lake County, County Examiner hopes Tavares city council also take these health department stats into consideration as they discuss the merits of the ordinance.
