Reykjavik will cut water and power to caravan community

Residents of a caravan community at Sævarhöfði face losing water and electricity in less than three weeks, with no firm plan for where they will go, mbl.is reports. Reykjavik City terminated an agreement this summer for a plot in Gufunes intended for a caravan community.

Geirdís Hanna Kristjánsdóttir, a resident and treasurer of the Association of Caravan Residents, said the situation had not changed since mbl.is last spoke with her more than a month ago. The residents proposed using a former Sorpa site at Sævarhöfði, but the idea was rejected, she said.

“There is one man within the city who seems to be allowed to act with impunity on all decisions concerning us, and that is the chair of the city executive council,” Geirdís Hanna said, referring to Einar Þorsteinsson. She said the mayor had not contacted them and that they had not been invited to negotiations.

Þorsteinsson said in September that the city’s welfare department had contacted residents and offered assistance. Geirdís Hanna said there had been no direct conversation with the department since the group lived in Laugardalur. She also said residents had repeatedly tried, without success, to meet Þorsteinsson, who was mayor at the time. She said the city had provided no supporting documents or explanation for its spending related to the community at Sævarhöfði.

There are 12 or 13 vehicles at the community, including caravans, motorhomes and a bus converted into a motorhome. The group has spoken with various parties about alternatives, but nothing is settled. One option being explored is a campsite in Vogar that previously hosted a caravan community.

Geirdís Hanna said she felt it was unreasonable to have to look for a place outside Reykjavik. She said around half the group had registered addresses in the capital and that she paid local taxes there. Citing the European Social Charter, she said caravans are recognised as homes, but argued that the city does not recognise them as a place of refuge for the residents.

Responding to Þorsteinsson’s remarks that long-term residence in caravans is not legally permitted, she said long-term residence in summer houses is also not permitted, yet many people do it. She also questioned how people could live more sustainably than in a caravan, saying the city promotes a greener way of life.

Geirdís Hanna said some residents had been dropping out of the community because of the way the city was treating them.