Homeless advocates say the clearing underscores the need for lawmakers to set clear boundaries on when city officials can engage with encampment residents.

The encampment at 3rd Street and Massachusetts Avenue NE was located on a small plot of federal land, leaving the responsibility of clearing it to the National Park Service — not D.C.

Unhoused residents at three D.C. encampments will get offers of housing and services before the city shuts down the sites permanently.

Advocates worry that permits for steateries could be used as a pretext to clear encampments.

The Bowser administration cleared an encampment underneath the Whitehurst Freeway on Monday; it has already returned.

Inhabitants were directed to shelters, and many refuse to move out of the Rock Creek location.