Homeless caught in standoff over fate of Sydney tent city

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the homeless people won't be moved until she's assured there is a long-term housing solution. Photo / AAP

NSW's top cop is hopeful a tent city in Sydney's Martin Place will be gone by the end of the weekend despite a tense standoff between state and local government.

Police Commissioner Mick Fuller yesterday added his voice to that of Social Housing Minister Pru Goward urging Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore to "step up" and resolve the issue after a meeting at Sydney Town Hall.

"At the end of the day, council has the power to remove their property if you don't have a bed, if you don't have a tent it will be very difficult to stay there long term," Fuller told reporters.

The City of Sydney does have the power to remove the property of those sleeping in Martin Place but Moore says the homeless people won't be moved until she's assured there's a long-term housing solution.

The lord mayor told reporters she had given a list of demands to the state government and wouldn't even consider taking action until they were met.

Among those five demands is a request the state government reopen Sydney's Sirius building, a purpose-built location for social housing that is currently sitting empty.

Also included was an appeal for a 24/7 safe space in the CBD to provide food, showers and laundry services to the homeless, funding to create more social housing units and planning approval to extend Sydney's affordable housing levy.

"The situation is they don't want to do it, they all want me to do it and I will only consider doing it if I know that accommodation for those in Martin Place and long-term solutions to homelessness and affordable housing [are in place]," the lord mayor said.

Until then, Moore says, police and the state government are welcome to use their own powers to move the tent city.

Goward said if the state government was to act it would first have to go to court. "We would have to then issue warrants on vulnerable, homeless people to get them to move, I don't think anybody wants that," she told reporters.

Despite this, Goward was hopeful the issue could be resolved.

"We will be there this afternoon offering people accommodation and then we will, I hope, with the Local Government Act behind us, be able to move people into safe and dry accommodation," she said.