ST. LOUIS — With shelters straining for space, a camp in north St. Louis is expanding on private property and has become a hub for food, water and services for people who are homeless.
Summer brings more visibility to the homeless population, community members say, while fewer shelter beds are available than during the winter months.
And now, with a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing cities to make sleeping outdoors in public spaces like parks and sidewalks illegal, options for where people can settle outdoors could potentially change. St. Louis officials say they’re reviewing the decision.
The camp in north St. Louis, dubbed the Pallet Yard by its residents near Cass Avenue and North 10th Street, has expanded on property owned by Northside Regeneration developer Paul McKee. It is home to about 25 people with self-governed security patrols, a portable toilet and a common area in the shade.
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Ray Redlich, vice president of the New Life Evangelistic Center, attributes the growing population of the Pallet Yard to the destruction of the riverfront’s former homeless encampment in May 2023. And last July, a handful of tents went up outside of City Hall before ballooning into a full-blown homeless encampment that fall. Over 30 tents were pitched there before ultimately being shut down in October, with the city citing fights, drugs and general disorder.
![A homeless encampment near downtown St. Louis grows into a community](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=200%2C134 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=300%2C201 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=540%2C361 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=640%2C428 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=750%2C501 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=990%2C662 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C692 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C802 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C891 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C987 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/f9/bf944cb0-93e6-510c-ba46-f3aab782173d/6682fdf7092b7.image.jpg?resize=1761%2C1177 2008w)
Tents sit at a homeless encampment on Cass Avenue and North 10th Street in St. Louis on Monday, July 1, 2024. The camp has about 25 residents.
The homeless population in St. Louis has grown in recent years. In 2019, an annual survey counted 1,031 people in St. Louis who were homeless; this year, it rose to 1,250 people, said Adam Pearson, director of the Department of Human Services for the city.
St. Louis has 760 year-round, city-funded shelter beds. An additional 147 beds can open during brutally cold conditions, according to the city’s website.
“In the winter, a lot of people are more sympathetic and willing to help,” said Tom Burnham, retired communications director for Peter and Paul Community Services, which provides assistance to people who are homeless. “Shelters will take overcrowding in the winter but will be less likely to in the summer.”
Data from Peter and Paul Community Services found that 354 people were turned away from shelters because of lack of space in June.
![St. Patrick's Center Outreach Team brings water, hygiene items and more to St. Louis' homeless population](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=400%2C267 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=540%2C360 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=640%2C427 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=750%2C500 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=990%2C660 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C690 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C800 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C888 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C984 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/57/457ad54b-f80c-5d48-8c21-703506bb3ef0/6675d159723b2.image.jpg?resize=1763%2C1175 2008w)
Danielle Silvinski, left front, and Savanna Goossens, both managers at the St. Patrick’s Center, pet a dog named Ghost. The dog’s owner lives at a homeless encampment at Cass Avenue and North 10th Street in St. Louis.
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Kevin Roberts holds water bottles and boxes of Narcan that were given to him by the St. Patrick's Center's outreach team at a homeless encampment near downtown St. Louis on Thursday, June 20, 2024.
‘Word spreads quickly’
The Pallet Yard is home to about two dozen people, but roughly 100 people visit the camp daily to receive food and services provided by community groups, such as the New Life Evangelistic Center.
“Word spreads quickly about a new camp,” said Redlich, the center’s vice president.
The encampment is a few blocks west of Interstate 44, on a lot owned by McKee’s Northside Regeneration. For more than 15 years, NorthSide Regeneration has owned hundreds of properties on the near north side of the city, hoping to redevelop the area. More than $1.6 million in back taxes is owed on properties affiliated with the company, including $11,000 on the Pallet Yard lot. The properties potentially could be sold at auction next year.
McKee wouldn’t comment on the encampment but said in an emailed statement, “We agree with Mayor Jones’ statement … that we need a regional approach to address homelessness. We would like to be a part of that solution.”
St. Louis Mayor Tishaura O. Jones has said on multiple occasions that the city disproportionately bears the responsibility for the region’s homeless population. Last month, she proposed at a East-West Gateway Council of Governments meeting that homelessness, like crime, should be addressed by multiple municipalities.
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A homeless encampment has grown on private land on Cass Avenue near Interstate 70, just north of downtown St. Louis.
Because the Pallet Yard is on private property, it likely wouldn’t be affected by the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision to allow cities to outlaw camping on public land. Ward 14 Alderman Rasheen Aldridge said he doesn’t think the Board of Aldermen would take such an “inhumane action,” but he acknowledged that the camp posed unique obstacles because it is on privately owned land.
“It’s harder for (St. Louis’ Department of Human Services) to intervene because they’re on private property,” Aldridge said.
The department tries to work with people at the Pallet Yard, connecting them to food resources, drug treatment and housing planning.
Aldridge said he has received several calls about safety concerns from residents of the nearby Columbus Square and Cochran Gardens neighborhoods. They say some people who frequent the Pallet Yard are migrating into their neighborhoods, sometimes inebriated, and littering.
LaTisha Earl, who has lived in Columbus Square for 10 years, said “it’s ridiculous” that the city has yet to take action against the camp.
“People are defecating on sidewalks, church steps and in the park,” Earl said. “It’s spilling into our neighborhood. ... We can’t get the city to come out.”
![A homeless encampment near downtown St. Louis grows into a community](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=150%2C100 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=225%2C150 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=300%2C200 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=400%2C266 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=540%2C359 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=640%2C426 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=750%2C499 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=990%2C659 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C688 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C798 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C887 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C982 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/18/c181efcd-9210-5117-ad3b-3976b2cabd0a/6682fdf16f9ed.image.jpg?resize=1765%2C1174 2008w)
Kevin Roberts, who’s been homeless for about six months, trims the grass with a string trimmer at a homeless encampment on Cass Avenue and North 10th Street in St. Louis on Monday, July 1, 2024. Roberts is second in command of security at the encampment and often takes precautions to keep it safe and clean.
Two camp residents — Kevin Roberts and a man who identified himself as E.J. — say they have taken on duties to keep the Pallet Yard orderly.
E.J. said he has several plans for the property, such as sectioning it off by men, women and families to ensure everyone’s comfort. He also wants to get a dumpster for the camp. And he says he hosts bi-weekly talks about life skills, such as how to choose the necessities of life over immediate wants.
“The accomplishments we make here are more than worthwhile,” E.J. said.
To curb violence, Roberts said he and E.J. conduct nightly security walks around the perimeter of the camp with E.J.’s pitbull, Savage.
The pair “keeps the riff-raff out” by escorting people with “bad spirits and energy” out, Roberts said.
Pearson, with the St. Louis human services department, said encampments will be shut down if they have incidents of violence and become a public safety concern.
Aldridge, however, said eliminating one encampment won’t solve larger issues.
“If the camp gets shut down, you’re just moving the problem to a new area,” he said.
![A homeless encampment near downtown St. Louis grows into a community](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=150%2C99 150w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=200%2C133 200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=225%2C149 225w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=300%2C199 300w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=400%2C265 400w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=540%2C358 540w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=640%2C424 640w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=750%2C497 750w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=990%2C656 990w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=1035%2C686 1035w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C795 1200w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=1333%2C884 1333w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=1476%2C978 1476w, https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/b/d6/bd6d0109-c525-5628-939a-d77d5e519524/6682fdee550eb.image.jpg?resize=1768%2C1172 2008w)
David McCubbins throws out trash that he picked up while cleaning up a homeless encampment on Cass Avenue and North 10th Street in St. Louis on Monday, July 1, 2024.
Although the homeless encampment outside City Hall started around July, it wasn't until September that the amount of tents quickly grew. After the mayor's office announced the camp would be cleared on October 2, there was uncertainty of how much longer the encampment would be allowed to stay. Video by Allie Schallert, [email protected]