Monroe County gives unhoused residents, advocates another week to move as city prepares separate camp closure Monday

Written from press releases

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — December 5, 2025

Monroe County commissioners have given unhoused residents at a South Rogers Street encampment — and the volunteers helping them relocate — another week to move, delaying enforcement of a county camping ban until Dec. 15, even as the City of Bloomington prepares to close a separate encampment at Browns Woods next week.

In a news release Friday, the Monroe County Board of Commissioners said it has “stayed” enforcement of Monroe County Code 257 at the Thomson property, a county-owned site on South Rogers Street near the Duke Energy substation, where unhoused residents have been camping. The code makes it unlawful to camp on county-owned or controlled property without the express permission of the Board of Commissioners.

The commissioners had previously ordered the camp cleared by Dec. 8. But after hearing concerns from the public about removing the encampment as temperatures drop, they agreed to work with a group of “concerned citizens,” including both housed and unhoused people, and to delay enforcement until Dec. 15.

During that extra week, the citizen group is expected to “actively work with the occupants of Thomson to secure housing in cooperation with churches, emergency shelters, fixed shelters, and other resources,” the release said, adding that the additional time is intended to “support the community of unhoused.” Shelbie Porteroff, identified as a member of the citizen group, said the hope is to keep working with county officials on “better solutions” and to underscore “the importance of not evicting during the winter,” according to the county.

Commissioner Jody Madeira said postponing the relocation for one week is meant to give advocates time “to meet and coordinate with every individual in the encampment and to make sure they have clear pathways to shelter, services, and long-term support.”

“This is not just about moving a site — it’s about doing right by our unhoused community members and helping to ensure the transition is orderly, humane and grounded in our shared commitment to safety, dignity and connecting our unhoused neighbors to available community resources,” Madeira said in the release.

Browns Woods in city jurisdiction, RCA-area camps in county

The county’s decision comes the same day the City of Bloomington released a separate statement about the planned closure of the Browns Woods encampment, which is not on county land.

The Browns Woods property is owned by the Community Foundation of Monroe County and managed as public space by the City of Bloomington’s Parks and Recreation Department under a 2002 agreement. The city said it plans to close that encampment on Monday, Dec. 8, with city staff and outreach partners on-site the following morning, Tuesday, Dec. 9, “to support the transition.”

A 30-day notice was issued to Browns Woods residents on Nov. 7, which the city said is now its standard protocol for encampment closures “to ensure clear communication, planning time, and sustained engagement with outreach teams.”

“For nearly a year leading up to this transition — and throughout the notice period — City staff and local service providers have worked closely with residents of the encampment to identify safer and more stable options,” the release states, listing partners including Centerstone, Beacon, HealthNet, Monroe County Jail Comprehensive Correctional Care, Heading Home, Bloomington police mental health professionals and outreach, Wheeler Mission, the City’s After Hours Ambassadors and Mobile Integrated Health, IU Health, the Monroe County Health Department, and New Leaf New Life.

The city emphasized that encampment closures are “used only as a last step when there are significant and immediate health or safety concerns at a site” and “are not an enforcement tactic but the end point of long-term outreach, service engagement, and repeated offers of safer alternatives.”

As of Dec. 3, according to the city, outreach teams reported that only one person remained at Browns Woods, and plans were underway to support that person’s relocation.

The city’s statement also draws a clear line between its authority and that of the county at another encampment near RCA Community Park.

“A separate encampment north of RCA Community Park is located on County-owned land and falls under Monroe County jurisdiction,” the release states. “Actions taken at that location are not directed, approved, or enforced by the City of Bloomington.”

Winter, shelters and belongings

Both governments acknowledged the added risk that winter poses for people living outside.

The city noted that the Bloomington Severe Winter Emergency Shelter (B-SWERS) has been at or near capacity many nights this season, but said the shelter coordinates closely with the Stride Crisis Center “to ensure that every person seeking a bed is connected to a safe place to sleep that night.”

Bloomington officials also outlined how personal belongings are handled when encampments are closed. The city said it follows a standardized process in which items are gathered and stored for 30 days with the support of outreach teams, unless they are contaminated, perishable, or unsafe to store. Individuals are given multiple opportunities to collect essential items before and during the transition, the release said.

“These situations are incredibly difficult for everyone involved,” Mayor Kerry Thomson said in the statement. “We use encampment closures only as a last step, and always alongside outreach. Our team and our partners will continue working directly with each individual to support a safer, more stable path forward.”

“I know people are worried about their neighbors, and I share that concern,” Thomson added. “We all want a community where no one has to sleep outside to stay safe. Until we get there, we will continue leading with compassion, clarity, and care, and taking steady steps that strengthen our long-term system of shelter, housing, and support.”

The city directed residents to its Housing and Homelessness Response Report, which outlines long-term strategies and encampment protocols, at bton.in/hrhi.

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The Bloomingtonian visited the RCA camp Friday, where a resident said an encroaching housing development has been an issue, and that a resident of the camp with a mental health condition had been yelling at night, which prompted a response from law enforcement. Not long after that, residents were told they were being evicted, after allegedly being told they had until spring. The Bloomingtonian has not yet reached out to law enforcement to verify those accounts, but during a meeting Thursday Monroe County Commissioner Jody Madeira cited an uptick in reports of people allegedly looking into occupied homes in the area and attempting to get into vehicles.

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