The gates were locked and the giant white tent that sheltered hundreds of homeless men for nearly six years was dismantled Friday morning (February 12).
Some who had called Fort Lauderdale's Tent City home boarded buses to shelters with the promise of a better life.
"For some of us, it's going to be a good move," said a four-year Tent City resident who declined to give his name. "Some of us just couldn't get out of here on our own."
Social workers and city work crews awakened the people living at the homeless camp - set up in a parking lot near Fort Lauderdale City Hall - early Friday. Then the homeless packed their belongings in garbage bags and suitcases and boarded buses to the First Care shelter in Lauderhill.
"If they want to go, we'll find a place for them," said Mel Goldberg, the Broward County director of the Homeless Outreach Program.
About three dozen people had left the open-air camp for the newly built Homeless Assistance Center in Fort Lauderdale weeks earlier.
Mary, a 70-year-old mother who lived at the camp since it opened in 1993, was sad about the departure. She and about 60 other people will spend a week at First Care before being placed elsewhere.
"You can't live with people for this long without getting attached and finding a bond," said Mary, who declined to give her last name. "This was a big family."
Mary, who has been homeless for 19 years, says she'll try living in a shelter. Others opted not to board the bus, saying they did not want to live under strict shelter rules at the Homeless Assistance Center. Others said they did not want to be separated from their partners. The HAC separates men from women.
People sent to the HAC at 920 NW Seventh Ave. can stay for no more than 60 days. They will get medical screenings and an action plan to get them back on their feet.
Workers roped off an area littered with an array of belongings from homeless residents who could not haul them away on Friday. The items will be held for three days before being disposed of, Goldberg said.
As Tent City residents hugged one another and said their goodbyes, homeless advocate Arnold Abbott wondered how many would eat.
Abbott, who provided some meals and helped arrange others for the homeless, said many of the people being moved Friday will eventually return to the streets.
"I need another safe zone where I can feed them, "Abbott said, "My question now is, how are they going to eat now?"
See related article:With the HAC and no tent, how can homeless eat?