A resource gap is impacting city officials ability to close St. Paul's Pigs Eye Park homeless encampment.
More than 80 people call this small encampment home, full of tents and at the moment covered in snow.
According to the city’s Safety and Inspections Director Angie Wiese, the biggest problem is a lack of resources. Specifically, support services like those funded by HUD, which are currently facing major federal budget cuts.
"When people ask are there shelter beds? These folks are considering their current situation, at fish hatchery, as stable housing," says Wiese. "And more stable than an overnight emergency shelter. So they're not really willing to leave their location unless it's for more stable housing."
Wiese says in the meantime, the city is checking in with residents daily and persistently seeking the necessary funding and long-term options for every resident.
One man living there says for now it's serving as a safe haven for a group totaling more than 80 people.
"I feel safe here because I don't do anything dumb, and I try to stick with my friends that protect me, and they do," he said.
He explained that the primary reason he settled in the camp two weeks ago was for "the freedom," stating that police consistently dismantled sites elsewhere in the city.
"Sure, it seems like a scary place at first when you first come here. People don't know about it or hear rumors about it. It's not as bad as you think."