Members of D.C.’s Health and Human Services team began clearing an encampment Thursday morning on a grassy no-man’s-land near the Kennedy Center after giving residents a day’s notice to remove their belongings.

The clearing comes as the Trump administration has vowed to crack down on homeless encampments in the District and threatened to fine or arrest any individuals who refuse to be removed or placed in shelters.

It also follows President Donald Trump declaring an emergency in the nation’s capital earlier this week and putting the city’s police department under federal control. He sent federal law enforcement agents on patrols in D.C. and deployed the National Guard to the city. D.C. police data shows violent crime, after a historic spike in 2023, is declining.

By 8 a.m. Thursday at the encampment, three people had already packed their belongings and scattered. Six more were busy wiping down their tents and folding tarps to meet a 10 a.m. deadline set by the District. Several residents said they had been at the encampment for months.

“It’s a longer walk than it looks across the bridge to Virginia,” said David Beatty, 67, who has lived in the camp for eight months. “If I can get my stuff in storage, I’ll do what I usually do. I have a broom and a dustpan, and I walk around sweeping up.”

The District usually posts notices for clearings 14 days in advance, and the site had not been on the District’s list for clearings. Rebecca Dooley, a spokesperson for the deputy mayor for health and human services, said the encampment’s proximity to the highway qualified it for expedited removal, which requires only 24 hours’ notice.

Dooley said the decision to clear the site was made Wednesday internally within the city’s health and human services agency. When asked if the White House was involved in the decision, she referred questions to the mayor’s communications team. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the clearing.

About a half dozen outreach workers from nonprofits helped residents pack up. Dooley said they made offers of shelter to the people who were leaving the encampment, but she was unsure if anyone had taken them up on it.

“We’re following our own protocol,” she said, noting that there are no plans to arrest people who turn down shelter referrals. She said it is the only cleanup scheduled for Thursday.

William Wilson, 66, dragged his cart of clothes and camping gear up the hill. “I’d like to invite the president to spend some time here in a tent with us,” he said. “We’re nice people. We’re a family here — we get along.”

The clearings come as the presence of more federal law enforcement has become more visible in portions of the District.

The actions have sparked mixed reactions among residents, with some outraged by Trump’s decision and some offering tepid support. In Northwest Washington, a checkpoint with local and federal law enforcement officers on Wednesday evening drew protesters and other onlookers who shouted at the officers.

Earlier Wednesday, Trump said the administration intends to ask for an extension of the emergency declaration beyond 30 days. Such a move would require congressional approval.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2025/08/14/dc-trump-police-takeover-encampment/