The strip of grass and gravel locals call the "End of the World," along the Industrial Canal in Bywater, is about to be cleared. City crews plan to remove a small homeless encampment there as redevelopment continues at the adjacent former naval base. About a dozen people still live at the site, and officials say outreach teams will first try to connect them with vouchers and other services before the area is cleared. The move follows a wave of rehousing during the pandemic years and more recent cuts to local homelessness resources.
Targeted sweeps, city says
City housing director Jeffrey Schwartz told NOLA.com that crews will carry out targeted sweeps to relocate "a few dozen people" living along several riverbank encampments and to connect them with services. According to the same report, about 12 people remain at the grassland camp after earlier clearings, and the administration's outreach push has rehoused more than 1,500 people with the help of a federal grant over the past two years. City officials acknowledge that much of that federal money has now run out, which sharply limits how far the program can reach.
Who’s offering help
Most of the on-the-ground outreach is led by UNITY of Greater New Orleans, the nonprofit that has been a key partner in the city's rehousing efforts. UNITY provides housing vouchers and placement services for people leaving encampments, pairing caseworkers with short term rental assistance and support to move people from the street into permanent housing. Advocates say the model can work, but only when there is enough funding and enough willing landlords, both of which are in short supply across New Orleans.
Development pressure near the canal
The camp sits beside the old Naval Support Activity site on Poland Avenue, now the focus of an estimated 300 million dollar redevelopment. Developer Peter Aamodt told NOLA.com that the encampment has not affected construction timelines. City planners also point to a new park on top of the Gov. Nicholls Street wharf, scheduled to open on Thursday, April 16, as part of a broader wave of waterfront projects that will reshape public access along the canal edge. For nearby residents and developers, the encampment has become one more planning question to sort out as those projects ramp up.
Residents and advocates weigh the trade offs
People living at the site, along with some nearby neighbors, told reporters they feel a mix of solidarity and worry as the clear out approaches, with some describing the group as a kind of "family" while they decide whether to accept offers of housing. Advocates point to a larger housing crunch in the city, with rising street homelessness and strained shelter capacity in recent years, a trend documented by PBS NewsHour. City officials say outreach teams will keep working with camp residents as the new park and the naval base redevelopment move ahead.
