Portage apartment tenants call on Sheriff's Office to remove homeless encampment

PORTAGE, Mich. — Residents at Davis Creek Apartments in Portage are calling on the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office to remove a homeless encampment that sits in the woods behind the complex.

Several tenants said they are worried about their safety and the condition of their property. One resident told News Channel 3, "We're worried about like stuff on our porches and you know our safety and when we hear noise at night time we have to go out there and make sure nobody's messing with our stuff."

A photo shared with the outlet showed piles of garbage and junk pushed up behind one of the apartment buildings.

Kalamazoo County Portage Department of Public Safety Assistant Chief Michael Collier confirmed that officers have been called to Davis Creek Apartments several times over stolen property and nuisance complaints.

According to the office manager at Davis Creek Apartments, the encampment has been a problem for going on a year. She said people living at the encampment make a mess while digging through the complex's dumpsters, and that maintenance crews have found needles in people's yards.

In May, deputies told people living at the encampment to leave, but residents say they returned not long after.

News Channel 3 reached out to Kalamazoo County Undersheriff Michelle Greenlee to ask whether the Sheriff's Office plans to have the encampment removed again and whether the office helps connect people to housing or other resources when they are removed. Greenlee did not respond by the time of publication.

Residents say more needs to be done to address the underlying issue so that people do not end up living in the woods elsewhere.

"They're booting everybody out from where they're at and it's not solving anything," a tenant said. "Where are they supposed to go? They just keep getting moved around its not helping them."

JTB Homes, a West Michigan home builder, owns the property. News Channel 3 reached out to JTB Homes to ask whether the company is working with law enforcement to address the issue but did not receive a response.