homeless encampment

City officials said because more shelter beds are available, camping throughout Portland is prohibited. But outreach workers argued that more time was needed to successfully help those living outside access some kind of housing, and many showed up Tuesday morning to protest.

City officials said Friday that they begin enforcing Portland's no-camping policy starting Dec. 19, as long as beds remain available at the municipal shelter.

Portland officials said they have not yet set a date to clear the Harbor View encampment, but the Maine Department of Transportation said it will ask some people within a certain area under the Casco Bay Bridge to move on Dec. 11.

The Portland City Council has rejected a measure that would have temporarily allowed unhoused people to camp on certain parcels of public property and prohibited the clearing of tent encampments.

The proposal comes at a time when the city is under pressure to find solutions to address Portland's growing unhoused population.

The Harbor View Memorial Park under Casco Bay Bridge on Commercial Street has become the latest gathering spot for unhoused residents in Portland. The city is making plans to begin outreach efforts there, and said that it could be cleared by the end of the month.

The encampment has more than 100 tents and has grown since May after three other sites in Portland were cleared over the summer and fall.

It's not clear exactly how many people will be asked to leave the site, and outreach workers said Thursday that there's confusion about who specifically will be removed.

The city would buy 10 all-season canvas tents and place them around the Head of Falls trail where about 40 people have been living.

The original measure would have declared a temporary state of emergency at the Portland shelter so that 50 additional beds could be added to the space ahead of the colder weather.