A Kensington homeless encampment will be dismantled after the city of Philadelphia issued a 30-day encampment resolution notice that takes effect on Wednesday. On Wednesday, May 8, Kensington Avenue from East Orleans Street to Allegheny Avenue will be closed in both directions so city outreach teams can enter the encampment to “work on a planned encampment resolution.” “The temporary closure is needed to ensure the safety of city outreach teams as they engage individuals during the final day of encampment resolution on Wednesday, May 8, during which individuals residing at the encampment have been notified to dismantle any tents and structures that pose public health and safety hazards and obstruct sidewalk passage,” the mayor’s office said in a statement. The closure will take place between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. During the closure, drivers will be detoured to Frankford Avenue and other nearby streets. The closure of this encampment marks the end of a month-long process that started on April 4, when the city posted a 30-day notice on the 3000 and 3100 blocks of Kensington Avenue. The city says outreach teams and social services have been engaging with the individuals residing in the encampment since the notice went up to ensure low-barrier housing, services and connections to treatment are made available. “This is a longstanding issue and this is not a one size fits all solution, so I think everyone needs to be at the table,” Rosalind Pichardo, with Operation Save Our City, said. “It can’t be an opinion from a politician, it has to be the fact of a physician and a medical professional to deal with the crisis that we’re having here.” City officials estimate that 700 people are homeless in the neighborhood but only about 75 people are living in the targeted area. In Philadelphia it is a policy to connect people living in an encampment with a shelter or treatment center, but they do not have to accept it. This is a part of Mayor Cherelle Parker’s plan to improve the Kensington neighborhood, which she laid out in her first 100 days plan. Sign up for our Breaking newsletter to get the most urgent news stories in your inbox.