Peoria city leaders don’t plan to clear encampments for weeks [Video]

PEORIA (25News Now) – Peoria city leaders said they won’t be clearing encampments right away after the homeless camping ban is enforced.

In November, the city council approved a rule to prohibit camping on public grounds. Not only will the law prevent people from camping in the city, but people breaking it could face hundreds of dollars in fines and jail time.

The Director of Community Development Joe Dulin said the process to enforce the ban will be gradual.

“It’s going to be a three or four-week process before you start seeing any of the encampments actually cleared,” Dulin said. “From there, we’ll work with residents that are still there that we are removing the items from to kind of respectively remove their items and store [them] as well as possible.”

Dulin said city leaders have been working with several social services, outreach groups, and shelters to provide people with resources and housing. He …