Deadline to dismantle tent city approaching

The May 4th deadline to dismantle what's become a massive homeless camp near downtown Dallas is coming up.

Those who work with the homeless are increasing their visits to the campsite, trying to offer resources to at least 300 people who call the camp home.

“We'd really like to get a piece of land somewhere and live in a tent and build what we want as far away from a bridge as we can get,” said Rochelle Aslin.

Rochelle and her boyfriend run a make-shift convenience store in the camp.

They know their time is running out.

“There's no easy solution, there's no let's just go out and leave them alone. That doesn't work. None of the simplistic solutions work,” said Dave Hogan, Dallas Police Department’s crisis intervention unit manager.

Hogan’s team helps assess people’s needs, offering referrals to the relevant agencies that could take them in.

Unfortunately, many at the tent city will simply find a new place to camp.

A new tent city has popped up at Haskell and Interstate 30.

A handful of tents swelled to nearly 40 today.

“They’re struggling, they're trying and it seems like every time they make one step forward, a systematic barrier will keep them from moving any further,” said Rebecca Cox with the Metro Dallas Homeless alliance.

Crisis intervention teams say there aren’t enough shelter beds to take everyone in even if they agreed to go.

Some people will get housing vouchers, but there is no guarantee they’ll find a place to live.

The Dallas population and real estate boom means there are few affordable apartments in the city.