Homeless Tree Dwellers Booted From Prospect Park

Park workers have cleared out bedding, clothes, and other possessions of the make-shift living quarters homeless people have been making in several of Prospect Park’s hollow trees, a Prospect Park spokesman confirmed last night.

Park vehicles  “descended” at about 2 p.m., according to Anne-Katrin Titze, a frequent park goer who had alerted several news outlets to the homeless tree houses earlier this week. 

The clean-up took place just hours after The Brooklyn Paper published a story on the tree homes, including a photo of one of the inhabitants, who jokingly called the tree his “house.”

On a visit to Prospect Park by Patch on Tuesday, evidence of the hollow-tree squatters were apparent: there was a frying pan carefully propped up by one tree, fresh remains of several cooking fires, cardboard and garbage bags left in several of the hollows, presumably for warmth. One residence even had what looked like a jerry-rigged nautilus machine (see photos in gallery).   

Titze and her partner, Ed Bahlman, who visit the lake nearly every day, said they first began noticing the tree residents in the middle of December and grew concerned about what the park's new human inhabitants were doing to the lake’s already polluted ecosystem.

“Lake water is being used for drinking, washing, and cooking,” said Titze via e-mail.

The pair also believes that nearby lake areas are being used as outdoor toilets, and Bahlman showed Patch several lakeside spots where toilet paper was apparent on the ground and areas of the lake that had foam, which he said came from urine (see photos). 

According to Titze, the trees are hollow because they are dying from within and she has asked the Prospect Park Alliance to remove them. But so far they have only cut down one and boarded up another. On Patch’s visit, someone had removed of the boards (see photo).

Prospect Park Alliance spokesman Paul Nelson, who confirmed the clean-up last night, said earlier yesterday that park workers would inspect the trees and assess which ones needed to come down.

“We don’t want to have to take trees down unnecessarily, but we’re going to look at everything,” said Paul Nelson.

As for the people living in them, Nelson said, “It’s illegal to camp in any city park, and we’ll keep working with Park Enforcement Patrol, the Department of Homeless Services and the NYPD to get them into the services they need.” 

He added that park workers inspected the park regularly to make sure no one is camping there and urged anyone who sees someone setting up residence in the park to call 311.

Patch was unable to find out last night if any contact has been made with the people who had been living in the trees or if they would have a way to get back their possessions.

People have been found setting up living quarters in the park before. In March, a man was found living in a house made of branches and in July two people living near the lake and eating the park’s ducks and squirrels. 

Update, Fri. Jan 6: We reached Nelson, who said unfortunately the homeless people will not be able to get back their belongings and also told us that , beginning next week.