A Saskatoon judge has rejected an emergency request to stop the city from clearing three encampment sites near Station 20 West. In a ruling released Tuesday, Justice Richard Danyliuk denied an injunction application from advocates Crystal Fafard and Sheela McLean. The encampments are set up on city-owned lots at 301 Avenue K South, 1112 19th Street West and 1202 19th Street West. Last week, fire bylaw inspectors went to the encampment to post notices calling for corrective action, citing health and safety concerns. Fafard and McLean argued the residents did not have other shelter alternatives and would face irreparable harm if forced to leave. Danyliuk identified a key gap in their case: neither applicant lives at the encampment, and they provided no evidence from anyone who does. “The applicants have put forth absolutely no evidence from any resident of the encampment who would be personally affected by the city’s actions or my order,” Danyliuk wrote. He found no evidence that encampment residents had authorized Fafard or McLean to represent them. “It is long on opinion and argument, and short on fact,” Danyliuk wrote of their affidavit material. Judge recognizes shelter shortage The judge acknowledged that shelter options in Saskatoon are insufficient. “Facilities for unhoused persons within Saskatoon are not plentiful,” Danyliuk wrote. Even so, he found the applicants had not provided enough evidence to establish a meaningful risk of irreparable harm if the injunction was denied. Danyliuk found an injunction would prevent the city from enforcing its bylaws and exercising its rights as a landowner. Fafard and McLean have been ordered to each pay the city $250 in court costs. The ruling removes a legal hurdle to the city’s planned encampment clearing. In a statement released after the decision, the city said its approach is “focused on connecting individuals with available supports and services while addressing significant health and safety concerns.” “We will continue to follow established encampment response processes,” the statement said. The city did not say whether, or when, it would proceed with the clearing.
