Meet the Aussie men who WANT to live on the streets and have set up camp in the city just the way they like it - but there's one rule everyone must follow
While the idea of homelessness terrifies most Australians, a group of men camped in the middle of Sydney say they're on the streets because they want to be.
For the last six months, the encampment, on the corner of York and Erskine streets beneath the former Bank of China offices, has become home to a group of rough sleepers who say they are there by choice, preferring life on the streets over paying a mortgage or rent.
'We're out here because we choose it,' said David, 52, who has been homeless for five years.
'It's not about money – I could get somewhere if I wanted. But I've got a better sense of community here than I ever did back home.'
Once married with two children and working in civil construction, he walked away from his old life in New Zealand to live in Australia but fell on hard times when Covid hit.
'I don't beg, borrow or steal, I never have,' he said.
'While people are up and about in the day, I'm up at night and that's when I find things to repurpose.'
Drug and alcohol use is widespread at the camp, with some residents saying they choose to spend their money on substances rather than housing.
Once married with two children and working in civil construction, David walked away from his old life in New Zealand to live in Australia but fell on hard times when covid hit
For the last six months, the encampment, on the corner of York and Erskine Streets in Sydney's CBD, has become home to a group of rough sleepers
One man openly admitted that drugs are his priority, saying he preferred to 'spend it on what I actually want' instead of rent.
David said the area is privately owned by a businessman who once faced his own hardships and now turns a blind eye to the unconventional 'residents' who have claimed it.
'The council is good to us, occasionally they ask if we can condense things but they've been respectful to us.'
The men rely heavily on The Station, a drop-in centre just around the corner which provides hot meals, laundry, showers and support services for the city's homeless and unemployed.
The convenience store next to the camp allows the men to charge their devices.
'They look out for us, they're good people,' David said.
Despite their tough living conditions, the men claim they have everything they need, except privacy.
One resident, Charles (who did not wish to be pictured) even built an impressive 'cube hut' from stacked bread crates, decorated with a Chinese lantern and lined with blankets and pillows.
Inside the men's-only camp
David is pictured next to a shelter that one of the men made out of bread crates
The shelter made from crates has a mattress and Chinese lanterns
The men say they have everything they need, except privacy
There's only one rule that the men must follow - the camp is strictly male only – with residents insisting women bring 'drama' - but that hasn't stopped romance from blossoming.
'Of course we've had women back here, why not?' David quipped.
'I had lady visitors when I lived at the State Library too.'
Jack, another long-term rough sleeper, said he met his ex-partner when he was homeless.
'She came up to me and said she'd pray for me. We hit it off, and next minute we're going to have a baby,' he said.
'Things fell apart when we split last year so she's living in our apartment with my child in North Sydney and I'm out here.'
Drug use, alcohol dependency and mental health challenges are common within the camp, but the site has remained largely undisturbed by authorities.
'There's a lot of methamphetamine use and a number of people here experience mental health conditions such as schizophrenia and psychosis,' one resident said.
'Some people come and go - they leave to manage their illness and then return, sometimes they don't.'
For now, this unlikely 'Skid Row' remains in the heart of Sydney – an unmissable reminder of the city's growing homelessness problem, and a community of men who insist that, for better or worse, this is the life they've chosen.
