Around 30 people have used the new Safer Place to Gather site, established in the west park lands by the State Government with marquees, tents and bedding, since it opened on August 7.

A Human Services Department spokesperson confirmed the Edwards Park site opened with “cultural advisors and social workers providing services at the site twice a day”, adding that the area was most suitable as it did not “immediately impact regular park lands users such as sporting groups, residents or businesses”.

This week, Drug and Alcohol Services SA are also starting to provide outreach at the site described by the department spokesperson as being a “culturally inclusive and safe space for remote visitors”.

Police removed 62 people from a Declared Public Precinct near Parliament House in the city during the first week of expanded powers in the city from July 11 to July 18.

Just before the strict new rules came into play on July 9, Human Services Minister Nat Cook and Police Minister Joe Szakacs announced the $490,000 Safer Places to Gather site would open later in July and operate until 2024 or longer if required.

Szakacs said at the time that it “will directly support the extension of Declared Public Precincts”.

“This initiative shows our government’s commitment and leadership to provide a responsive service to support visitors from remote communities, while also keeping our businesses, workers, residents and tourists feeling welcomed and safe,” he said.

The department spokesperson said infrastructure was now in place to create “a safer place to gather communally in the city”.

“Structures such as marquees, tents and bedding for shelter, a temporary ATCO (a transportable building) to provide space for outreach and other services to engage with visitors and provision for safe comfort fires are available,” the spokesperson said.

Questions about whether police are taking people banned from the northern end CBD to the site, and other questions around whether people using the site would be re-housed or if it was a solution to social issues in the CBD restricted zone, were not answered.

Police now have the power in the new CBD Declared Public Precinct to search any person for weapons, carry out drug detection, order people “posing a risk to public safety” to leave the area, ban a person from the precinct for up to 24 hours, and remove children at risk of physical harm

Hutt Street Centre chief executive officer Chris Burns previously raised concerns that the new rules and tougher policing shifted social issues further out of public sight while failing to “fix the problem” of a housing crisis, rising inflation, mental health and drug and alcohol dependency.

He also questioned the reasoning for establishing the $490,000 site “to assist remote visitors” in the western park lands.

“Why would you take indigenous people who are in the city out to an asphalt carpark on the side of Anzac Highway away from any public transport and away from any civilisation and say this is where you are living now?” he said in July.

But the state government said it was the best site for the new service.

“Edwards Park was chosen as the most appropriate site as it doesn’t immediately impact regular park lands users such as sporting groups, residents or businesses and there is already a hard surface to house temporary buildings and existing toilets, power and phone charging points, limiting the environmental impact on the park lands,” the department spokesperson said.

“It is also close to health and other services and easily accessible for staff and emergency services.”

Drug and Alcohol Services will start providing outreach at Edwards Park this week with the spokesperson adding that the organisation provides a short-term program to assist people “who wish to reduce alcohol dependence”.