Under North Side overpass. Lack of sanitary accommodations brought site to crisis point, authorities say.
Contractor bundles, destroys left-behind gear
ROCHESTER, Minn. – Police and other agencies rounded up cruft, debris and abandoned property at an encampment that homeless people had occupied for many months under a freeway bridge on Cascade Creek. Social workers earlier had tried to help the camp residents relocate. The site, under a Highway 52 off-ramp to Civic Center Drive, had become unsuitable or safe for human occupancy, said state Transportation Department spokesperson Mike Dougherty. A contractor was hired to remove abandoned property from the site. “We worked with organizations that assist people who are experiencing homelessness to offer connections to services with local organizations that offer support and safer alternatives for housing,” Dougherty said. As many as 170 people, all chronically homeless, had occupied the camp. It’s estimated that Rochester has 400 homeless people. The Cascade Creek site was Rochester’s largest congregation of unsheltered people.
Piled flotsam. Ready for crushing and binding into bales and hoisting on trucks for disposal.