Canada Toronto, Ontario Toronto, Ontario, Canada's largest city, was also home to its own "Tent City" until September 2002, when the residents of Tent City were evicted by the owner of the property,
Home Depot. It was situated in the downtown core of Toronto, near the waterfront, and was home to hundreds of people who were homeless. Toronto introduced rent supplement programs in the following year (2002–2004), by which 115 residents were given access to mainstream apartment units. Journalist
Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall voluntarily abandoned his middle-class lifestyle to live in Tent City for a year. He detailed his experiences in his 2005 book,
Down to This: Squalor and Splendour in a Big-city Shantytown. During the
COVID-19 pandemic, the city also witnessed a
revival of tent cities in its public parks.
United States Full-time tent living can be a way to save money, but it has some challenges. One of the main ones is finding an appropriate location and community. An alternative to tents that has gained popularity in the 21st century is tiny or mobile tiny homes. These homes were utilized for
disaster relief housing following
Hurricane Katrina in 2006, showcasing the advantages of tiny homes over traditional tents. In the 21st century, while the estimated absolute number of homeless people has decreased, tent cities have increased in large cities. Tent cities have also formed from mass protests and are not always related to homelessness. Some cities have sponsored tent cities publicly to cut down on homelessness, while in other cases, informally formed tent cities have been
torn down by cities.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tent cities have long been a part of Philadelphia's history. The steadily growing number of encampments has been passed down by multiple civil administrations—from
Wilson Goode (1984–1992) to the present-day's
Cherelle Parker (2024–present). The collection of encampments developed for multiple reasons. Some started as contained protests for affordable housing; others were attempts to establish secure living through a developed community. When assessing the number of homeless people in Philadelphia, the Office of Homeless Services counted 958 people on the streets. Non-profit organizations like
Project H.O.M.E. have made efforts to help by "providing housing, opportunities for employment, medical care, and education to homeless and low-income persons". contains one of the largest stable populations, between 5,000 and 8,000, of homeless people in the United States.
Camp Hope: Las Cruces, New Mexico Camp Hope is an alternative transitional living project for people experiencing homelessness through camping. It is located on the Mesilla Valley Community of Hope (MVCH) campus and is an alliance of agencies that address homelessness in
Las Cruces, New Mexico. The tent city can house 50 people who would otherwise be on the streets, providing them with a safe place to seek direct services, healthcare, jobs, and housing. Camp Hope has allowed people without housing to be right next to all the services the agencies on the MVCH campus provide. The camp was founded in November 2011 with temporary permission from Las Cruces. It was supposed to disband in March 2012, but no funding was available to build another shelter and the City Council stated that the tent city benefited the city. In 2013, with help from engineering students from
New Mexico State University, the site was rezoned as a planned unit development that sanctioned a permanent campground along with a number of other uses on the non-profit's campus.
Second Chance Village: Akron, Ohio This service club, made up of homeless and formerly homeless members, was founded by Ryan Scanlon and operated its tent city operations in the rear of private property owned by Sage Lewis LLC in the Middlebury area of
Akron, Ohio from January 2017 until January 2019. It was known as Second Chance Village and remains a nonprofit service club organization in secret locations, splintered amongst the cityscape. Writing for
The New York Times in 2018, Mitch Smith wrote about the village, describing a homeless-run culture wherein people experiencing homelessness created a drug-free, alcohol-free community with security officers and a democratically elected tri-council. All services were run by people experiencing homelessness, including a laundry, showers, a computer lab, a clothing room, and a food pantry. Akron City Council rejected Mr. Lewis's request for a zoning exception on an 8-to-4 vote in September 2018. All tents were forced to be removed by January 5, 2019.
California , near
Laney College campus
Homelessness in California is a serious issue, if going by the per capita rate in 2020 of homelessness, which ranks third in the US behind New York and Hawaii. 0.4% or more of Californians are homeless, and most major cities have homeless populations hovering around 0.5–1% of the city's population. This includes both sheltered and unsheltered homeless. Tent cities are prevalent in
Tenderloin, San Francisco, and
Skid Row, Los Angeles. The
BBC ran a news story in 2008 about the then-crisis in the US economy that forced many Americans, who used to own their own homes, to live in tents.
AlterNet published a story in 2009 about the mainstream media finally "discovering" the homeless situation in
Sacramento.
Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis experienced the emergence and growth of homeless encampments in the
aftermath of the
murder of George Floyd and resulting unrest in mid-2020. The
Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board had an experimental process to permit homeless encampments on city park property. Homeless encampments appeared at 44 park sites during the summer months. The park board closed all camps on January 7, 2021, and discontinued permits.
St. Petersburg, Florida In late December 2006, homeless people formed an impromptu tent city on the St. Vincent de Paul property in the 1400 block of Fourth Avenue N in
Saint Petersburg, Florida, when dozens of homeless moved off of public land across the street. In early January 2007, city officials noted city codes that prohibit living in tents and gave the owners one week to evict the occupants of the tent city.
Olympia, Washington Camp Quixote, a homeless encampment, began as a protest movement of homeless people and homeless advocates against criminalizing "anti-social" legislation that was passed by the city in January 2007, specifically referring to the ordinance restricting people from sitting on sidewalks. City officials ordered the camp to disband. The Olympia
Unitarian Universalist Congregation offered the encampment sanctuary on its property, being familiar with the Seattle faith-based network of homeless encampments. What began as a protest surrounding homelessness quickly became a faith community protest. The religious community protested the city's insistence on dismantling the homeless encampment because churches maintain a specific land use right that allows them to offer sanctuary to the poor (
Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act). Eventually, the adversarial protest turned to negotiation with local municipalities, with new ordinances condoning Camp Quixote with specific regulations and a 90-day limit and an option to move to other faith communities' property.
Seattle, Washington Homeless people have long resorted to seeking shelter in tents, but such communities are one of the first known to be organized by a sponsoring organization (a partnership between the Seattle Housing and Resource Effort and Women's Housing Equality and Enhancement League (SHARE/WHEEL)) and are one of the first in a major U.S. city to be largely accepted by local governments. Contrary to some stereotypes regarding the homeless, many residents of Tent City are employed, mostly in temporary or day labor jobs, but have insufficient income to obtain more permanent housing. The original Tent City and Tent City 2, created in the late 1990s, were created illegally and opposed by the City of Seattle. After being tolerated for some time, they were eventually forced to shut down. In March 2002, as a result of a legal battle, city attorney Tom Carr and SHARE/WHEEL attorney Ted Hunter signed a court-ordered
consent decree with SHARE, allowing Tent City only on private land (by invitation) and setting standards for its operation. Based on the consent decree, Tent City 3 was created and rotates around the Metro Seattle Core.
Tent City 4 was created in May 2004 as an attempt to expand beyond the consent decree and use public land and resources, something the consent decree does not allow. This attempt was unsuccessful, and Tent City 4 has since been relocated to eastern King County, where it is church sponsored. Tent City rules do not allow
drug or alcohol use and evicts anyone caught stealing or committing other crimes within the camp. Tent City 3 stayed an average of three weeks at each encampment before 2004, while Tent City 4 stayed in place for as long as 100 days. Since then, Tent City 3's stays have averaged between 60 and 90 days, with 90 days or so being a common length of stay. Cities have been adopting code amendments that limit stays to 60–90 days. Another homeless encampment, unaffiliated with Tent City 3 and 4, lived in donated, mainly fuchsia, tents at the University Congregational United Church of Christ in Seattle's
University District for several months ending March 5, 2009. At that time, it moved to the suburb of
Bryn Mawr south of Seattle. According to homeless advocates, residents criticized Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels for continuously clearing out homeless encampments, and named their encampment "Nickelsville". Out of respect for Mayor Nickels's recent efforts, the church did not use the "Nickelsville" name in referring to the encampment. While on the road in Seattle, Washington, on March 30, 2009,
Democracy Now! covered a story about Seattle's Nickelsville. They also covered a story about the police raid on Nickelsville the previous day, March 29, where 24 people were arrested.
King County, Washington Tent City 4 (TC4) is a homeless encampment of up to 100 people created in May 2004 in eastern
King County outside of Seattle. Residents are adult men and women, although there is a provision for quartering minor dependents in emergencies.
Transition Park, Camden, New Jersey A community of 50 to 150 people had taken up residence in
Camden, New Jersey, nestled on the right side of the I676 West exit 5A ramp. Although attempts have been made to find housing for the population, no one has been placed. Transition Park's Mayor and City Council continued to protect their community and seek medical attention for those in need. In May 2010, residents were forced out of the city and into local missions. Under the leadership of Amir Khan, the pastor of Solid Rock Worship Center in Clementon, NJ, and founder of the Nehemiah Group, a faith-based nonprofit organization that Khan and his son Micah run, 54 residents of Tent City were moved to the Wingate by Wyndham Hotel in Mount Laurel in May 2010 with the help of volunteers. Pastor Khan asked his congregation and local business members for help and raised $250,000 to provide some homeless people of Camden's Tent City with housing and human services for at least one year. Although these homeless men and women were initially moved to a hotel and received a spa treatment upon arrival, months later, drugs and alcohol are taking a toll on their adjustment to life in their new environments. On the positive side, Lorenzo Banks, the ex-self-appointed Mayor of Tent City, and James Boggs, another Tent City leader, got jobs providing homeless outreach for Volunteers of America-Delaware Valley in Collingswood, NJ. Although several people also enrolled in community college, mental illness, addiction issues, and a lack of affordable housing illustrates the roadblocks to a healthy life for Tent City residents over the long term. By September 13, 2010, 19 of the original 54 were removed from the "hotel program" and many former Tent City residents continue to move from one street corner or overpass to another, continuing the homelessness issue in Camden.
Potomac Mills, Woodbridge, Virginia Since 2003, there exists a tent city at
Potomac Mills in
Woodbridge, Virginia, adjacent to the
Potomac Mills mall. The private landlord tolerates it. In 2018, some of the residents were directed to leave.
Other locations Tent cities are also found in the following locations:
Ann Arbor, Michigan;
Chattanooga, Tennessee;
Columbus, Ohio;
Athens, Georgia;
Atlanta, Georgia;
Reno, Nevada;
Sierra Vista, Arizona;
Providence, Rhode Island:
Sacramento, California;
San Diego, California;
Santa Rosa, California;
San Francisco;
San Jose, California;
Oakland, California;
Berkeley, California Lakewood, New Jersey;
Lowell, Massachusetts;
Huntsville, Alabama;
Nashville, Tennessee;
St. Louis, Missouri;
Ft. Worth, Texas; and
Buffalo, New York;
Umoja Village, built by
Take Back the Land, was a shantytown in
Miami created to protest
gentrification and a lack of
low-income housing in Miami. Another tent city, Tent City, was a temporary refugee center constructed of bedsheets aboard Carnival Triumph during the infamous Carnival Triumph Fire of 2013 when power to the vessel was gone. ==Events==