The mayors of Niagara’s three largest lower-tier municipalities have gone on record requesting Premier Doug Ford invoke the Notwithstanding Clause to implement measures to deal with issues of mental health, addiction, and homeless encampments.
At Council’s November 4th meeting, St. Catharines Mayor Mat Siscoe spoke to a letter he co-signed along with 11 other Ontario mayors, explaining his rationale for demanding the Premier override the Charter rights of vulnerable residents and invoke a rarely used legal measure.
Two days later, Welland Mayor Frank Campion released a “Mayor’s Message” indicating that the week before he had sent a letter to the Premier requesting the use the NWC to assist Welland “in finding reasonable and compassionate solutions in addressing the complex legal, social, and public safety concerns and roadblocks” related to unauthorized encampments. The mayor also indicated that he had sent a Notice of Motion to Welland’s Clerk to formally elicit his Council’s support on the issue, despite the fact his letter had already been sent to the Premier.
Not to be outdone, Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati added his own Notice of Motion recommending use of the Not Withstanding Clause (NWC) to his Council’s November 12th agenda. (Brampton's Patrick Brown is one of the 12 Ontario mayors who signed the letter calling for the use of the NWC; mayors of 432 municipalities, including the three largest in the province, Toronto, Ottawa and Mississauga, did not sign the letter.)
The NWC is the common name for section 33 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which, if invoked in relation to legislation passed by the Federal government, a provincial or territorial legislature, overrides Charter provisions that protect fundamental freedoms along with legal and equality rights.
The clause cannot be used in relation to mobility, democratic or language rights and any declaration is valid for only five years, unless it is re-enacted.
The declaration effectively insulates the proposed legislation from judicial review.
“Once invoked, the notwithstanding clause prevents a court from declaring that legislation covered by a section 33 declaration is of no force or effect, despite any inconsistency in the legislation with the rights or freedoms under the listed Charter sections,” the Government of Canada website states.
In effect, it’s a way for governments to override the rights of their citizens.
The clause was viewed as a compromise during the constitutional debates of the early 1980’s. Provincial governments were concerned the proposed Charter of Rights ceded too much authority to the judiciary. Section 33 would allow for a “safety valve” in rare or unusual circumstances. Jean Chrétien, who was the Justice Minister at the time, argued the clause would likely only be used in non-controversial circumstances, but also noted it could be used if the Supreme Court made a ruling legalizing hate speech or child pornography as freedom of expression. Most constitutional scholars opined that the use of the clause would likely trigger public opposition.
While the Federal government has never invoked the NWC, it has been used by various provincial governments. Quebec has repeatedly used the clause, including on matters related to a law restricting commercial signs in languages other than French; legislation expanding requirements that businesses communicate in French; and a law preventing the wearing of religious symbols by public servants.
Ontario had never used the NWC until 2018. The Ford government has shown no compunction in invoking the clause on issues ranging from reducing the number of municipal wards in Toronto; preventing Ontario education workers from striking; and placing limits on third party political advertising. Two of the scenarios concluded without the NWC technically being imposed, and the third party advertising matter is now before the Supreme Court of Canada, but the Premier’s willingness to use the Act without hesitation resulted in the current demand from the Ontario Big City Mayors (OBCM) caucus.
The OBCM caucus is made up of the 29 mayors of Ontario cities with populations of 100,000 or more. Collectively, the group represents nearly 70 percent of Ontario’s population. In the run up to the annual Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) conference in August, the OBCM launched the Solve the Crisis campaign, calling on the Province to address the homelessness and mental health crisis by appointing “a single ministry and minister to lead the province’s response and create a municipal-provincial task force to direct resources and supports to our cities immediately.”
The only Niagara Mayor part of the OBCM, Mayor Siscoe, indicated at the time that “the government committed to working with us on more options for treatment and enforcement.”
At AMO, the PC government announced it would be closing 10 safe consumption sites by March 2025, due to their locations near schools and daycares, impacting five sites in Toronto and others in Ottawa, Guelph, Hamilton, Thunder Bay, and Kitchener. The PCs claimed that crime in the vicinity of safe consumption sites was “significantly higher compared to surrounding neighbourhoods” and that police service reports that “hydromorphone distributed at consumption sites is being diverted and trafficked, increasing the supply of dangerous and illegal drugs in communities where these sites operate.” Contrary to the claims made by Ford and the PC government, numerous studies have found there is no evidence to support the idea that these sites increase crime in the neighbourhoods where they are located.
What the PCs did not detail was that neighbourhoods with safe consumption sites have seen dramatic decreases in drug fatalities compared to surrounding areas.
The government’s announcement on the closures was criticized by a wide range of organizations, including approximately 250 faith leaders, Provincial union leaders, who entitled a related news release, Save Our Sites or Fill Our Morgues, and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).
CAMH submitted that consumption and needle exchange programs are essential healthcare services and a “necessary part of a comprehensive response to the drug toxicity crisis.” Without the sites, additional pressure would be put on Ontario’s already overburdened emergency rooms.
The PCs also announced in August that it would be investing $378 million into 19 new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) hubs. The facilities will “focus on treatment and recovery” and add up to 375 highly supportive housing units, but will not offer supervised drug consumption or needle exchange programs.
While the OBCM described the HART hub announcement as a “good step”, the caucus met in October to “strengthen their call” to the senior levels of government on the issues of homelessness, mental health, safety and addictions crisis impacting municipalities. OBCM came up with a further motion containing “more specifics” in what they were requesting.
The Province, along with the Federal government, were called upon to seek intervenor status in court cases related to encampments; prohibit the public use of drugs; implement diversion courts; commit to the quick build of supportive housing units; review the Mental Health and the Health Care Consent Act to expand the scope of mandatory addiction care and treatment and update the Trespass to Property Act to address “aggressive and repetitive” trespass.
Shortly thereafter, five of the OBCM members appeared on TVO’s The Agenda with Steve Paikin speaking to their latest motion and the issues facing their municipalities. Oshawa Mayor Dan Carter, a recovering alcoholic and drug addict, argued that he wanted to see the Federal and Provincial governments get “uncomfortable” about what he described was the “worst health crisis” Ontario has ever experienced. On the issue of expanding the scope of mandatory treatment for the homeless, noting his own history, Carter argued that increased intervention was necessary and had played a role in his own recovery.
Host Steve Paikin offered that the OBCM’s latest efforts seemed to be “less concerned about the rights of individuals and more about getting things done” when it came to the issue of homelessness, prompting the panel to list current impediments and frustrations.
Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall raised the issue of the rights of those in encampments in city parks impeding the rights of families from using those facilities. Cambridge Mayor Jan Liggett bemoaned that police have been reticent to enforce laws, though did not detail which specific laws she was referring to. Brantford Mayor Kevin Davis observed that in light of recent court cases, there was a lack of “coherent set of principles” to guide municipalities on the current state of the law when it came to homeless encampments. The OBMC estimates there are 1,400 encampments in the province.
The leading court case in Ontario on encampments was rendered in early 2023 in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo.
The Region owned a vacant property that was going to be used for parking related to the future construction of a new train/bus station. In late 2021, an encampment took root on the property and, while estimates of numbers fluctuated, there were at least 53 individuals living there at the time of the court hearing in 2022.
The Regional Municipality of Waterloo had been a leader on the issue of homelessness, being the first community to count the number of people found to be experiencing the issue. The “Point in Time Counts”, like the one in Waterloo, became a requirement for providers after a Provincial Minister’s directive under the Housing Services Act. The Region had also developed an Encampment Policy, though largely due to an earlier encampment eviction that was done without “reflecting the dignity of those living in the encampment.”
The Region brought the matter before the courts seeking a direction on how it could enforce its property rights, with the hope that the Court would issue an order that could be used as a precedent for other homeless encampments. A risk assessment had been prepared to justify the dismantling of the encampment and the Waterloo Regional Police Service sought intervenor status, as any possible enforcement would rest with their organization. Members of the encampment were represented by Waterloo Region Community Legal Services.
The Court found that while the risk assessment by the Region may have been well-intentioned, the classification that the presence of 20 tents, or more, as “high risk” was not “tethered” to any objective data and did not measure the “relative risk of choosing between eviction, allowing encampment residents to stay, or pursuing other options.” In addition, adjacent property owners that testified had not personally witnessed “much behaviour that troubled them”. The Court concluded that concerns were more related to potential dangers and “fear of the unknown”.
The main takeaway from the case for municipalities was that any dismantling of an encampment will not pass muster if the municipality cannot ensure that there are accessible shelter spaces available for the encampment residents. At the time of the Waterloo hearing, the Court found that there were not “adequate safe alternatives” to sleeping in encampments, that the Region was simply moving the risks elsewhere in the community and the result of being displaced without a location to go to, would be more dire for encampment residents. Also, because it was not a municipal park, there was no concern for the rights of equal access by families and the Region had not demonstrated that they needed the vacant parking lot, any time soon.
With that context, during the television broadcast, host Paikin asked about the possible use of the NWC to override the precedent set by the Waterloo case. The mayors on the panel indicated that it might be necessary for the Province to consider, as the municipalities have no authority to invoke the clause. Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson expressed some reticence on the option, arguing that there may be legislative tools already available or existing legislation that could be updated to achieve results without infringing rights. Mayor Liggett pointed out that because the OBCM operates on a consensus basis, not one of majority rule, the caucus had not included the use of the clause in their most recent motion.
A week later, on October 29th, during a press conference in Scarborough, Premier Ford was asked what steps his PC government is taking in response to the OBCM’s most recent motion. The Premier responded:
“I talked to many Big City Mayors. There was a ruling in Waterloo that the courts said you have to put someone in a shelter, which is fine, but they get a choice. They go into a shelter, look around and say, “I don’t like it.” That’s a problem. If there’s a roof over their heads, they have to do it.”
The Premier then proceeded to challenge the OBCM to request the use of the NWC, in writing.
“You can’t put your butt on both sides of the fence. You get a lot of slivers…so I ask the Big City Mayors, don’t get slivers. Make a decision and stand by your decision.”
Premier Ford did not give any indication that the Province had pending legislation prepared to address the issues or whether the invocation of the NWC would be in association with municipal enforcement bylaws, enacted under the authority of the Municipal Act, or municipal zoning by-laws, enacted under the authority of the Planning Act, both provincial statutes.
Two days after the Premier’s challenge, 13 mayors from Barrie, Brampton, Brantford, Cambridge, Chatham-Kent, Clarington, Guelph, Oakville, Oshawa, Pickering, St. Catharines, Sudbury and Windsor co-signed a letter requesting the Province consider “where necessary” use of the NWC to implement “in a timely and effective manner”, the measures previously espoused by the OBCM, such as a Drug and Diversion Court, changes to the Trespass to Property Act, prohibitions to the public consumption of drugs and mandatory treatment.
The joint letter repeated the desire that the Province intervene in any court case that “restricts the ability of municipalities to regulate and prohibit encampments”, while oddly citing an American case that “courts should not be dictating homelessness policy.”
It should be noted, while 13 of the OBCM caucus signed the letter, the other 16 mayors did not. With the exception of Brampton and Windsor, the mayors of the eight of Ontario’s 10 most populous municipalities were not part of the correspondence, including Toronto, Ottawa and Mississauga. Hamilton City Council in a 9-6 vote defeated a motion that would have seen Council support the use of the notwithstanding clause.
Niagara has not been immune to the issues of mental health, addiction, and homeless encampments.
At a meeting in September, Mayor Siscoe in St. Catharines estimated that 50 percent of his time as mayor is now dedicated to the impacts of the homeless crisis on his community and local businesses.
A May report brought to the Region’s Public Health and Social Services Committee provided some statistics. At the end of 2023, there were 87 active encampments in the region. If there was to be a silver lining in the statistic it was that the number was done from 119 active encampments, the year prior.
The decrease in encampments, however, did not mean that the number of those experiencing homelessness decreased.
“In 2023, an average of 28 chronically homeless people per month were supported to exit to housing. At the end of December, there were 1,231 clients active on Niagara’s By-Name List (a list of all people experiencing homelessness in the community), with 594 (or 48 percent) experiencing chronic homelessness,” the report states. “This compares to 1,099 clients with 550 (or 50 percent) experiencing chronic homelessness at the same time in the previous year. The continued increase in those experiencing chronic homelessness (homeless for six months or more in the last year, or 18 months in the past three years) during the past 12 months is attributed in part to the increased cost and limited vacancy rates for affordable rental units and a lack of sufficient permanent supportive housing, making it progressively more difficult for individuals to exit homelessness.”
The following is a look at the recent discussions at the councils of Niagara’s three largest lower-tier municipalities on encampments, homeless shelters and the NWC.
St. Catharines
At St. Catharines City Council on November 4th, Mayor Siscoe addressed the letter of the thirteen mayors at the outset of the meeting. He declared that “I’m on record as saying we should not tear down encampments if we have nowhere for them to go. That hasn't changed. I've been very consistent on this over the last several years, and I'm honestly amazed that some people think that it has changed. I've repeated it over and over again.” The Mayor also indicated his support for the need to address the root causes of the crisis and a desire that the focus of efforts should be on rehabilitation over incarceration.
Although he did not specifically address the controversial use of the NWC, his support of the joint letter centred primarily around municipalities' lack of power in regulating where and when encampments are set up and the public’s frustration with open drug use.
“In St. Catharines, this has led to encampments on public land, up against people's property or adjacent to schools. Whether anyone likes this fact or not, the reality is that encampments tend to have a much higher incidence rate of drug use, of human trafficking, possession of weapons, and other illegal activity. We need to be able to prohibit encampments in areas of sensitive use.”
Mayor Siscoe also attempted to pre-empt any criticism that the mayors were criminalizing homelessness by calling such claims “inflammatory rhetoric and not helpful”. Mayor Nuttall’s social media comments introducing the joint letter, however, emphasized the need to deal with the prolific drug use and violence (in encampments) affecting our communities.
After giving his rationale for signing the letter, Siscoe offered Council members an opportunity to ask questions on his stance, but no comments or objections were raised.
The encampment issue had come up at St. Catharines Council two months prior when the members received a staff report entitled, “Outreach Services Overview and Update and Costs Associated with Homelessness, Drug Addiction, Mental Health and Street-Involved Behaviour.”
In June, Council had passed a motion to review the encampment program prior to 2025 budget deliberations. Encompassed in Council’s request was that options “to provide housing solutions, shelter solutions, encampment care and clean up, and expanding primary care and counseling services in St. Catharines” be investigated. In early August, Mayor Siscoe, under the Strong Mayor Powers of the Municipal Act, put a formal written direction to staff, to report back on “costs, both direct and indirect, related to homelessness, drug addiction, mental health and street-involved behaviour.”
In response, the September report claimed that the municipality had spent approximately $9.31 million on the related issues. There were costs allocated to security, fencing and parks and public space clean-up, though it would be difficult to ascertain how much of those costs could be directly associated with “street involved behaviour”.
The majority of the staff estimate was $5.2 million attributed to “loss revenue for land/property sales for 320 Geneva Street.” The property, in question, was the municipality’s former Parks building that Council tried to sell to the private sector for the provision of affordable housing. When the efforts were unsuccessful, the municipality gave the property to the upper-tier Regional Municipality of Niagara for 80 units of supportive and affordable housing.
In addition to detailing the related costs, the September report recommended that “budget resources currently allocated towards homelessness contracted services be redirected to strategic encampment cleanup efforts.”
In 2020, the City of St. Catharines had budgeted $350,000 to “tackle the prevalence of needles in our parks” and related cleanup. When the COVID-19 pandemic and the declared state of emergency happened shortly after, monies were reallocated to fund three St. Catharines-dedicated outreach workers, through the Region’s NASO (Niagara Assertive Street Outreach) program.
The NASO program, which engages with people experiencing homelessness, to minimize the harmful effects, and help the individuals work towards long-term housing solutions, has been lauded throughout the Region. Homelessness services, however, are not within the core jurisdiction of lower-tier municipalities. St. Catharines is the only lower-tier municipality that has partnered with the Region, though it has received dedicated service, as a result.
The related report stated that the “pressures on maintaining safe and clean public spaces have increased” resulting in rising costs. With the municipality’s three-year budget already allocating $328,000 for 2025, there would not be enough budgeted dollars to do both the NASO funding and the contracted services for encampment cleanups, which have been approximately $200,000 each of the last two years, with another quarter left in 2024.
At the meeting, St. Catharines Chief Administrative Officer David Oakes said that the recommendation to end the funding was a matter of looking at taxpayer affordability and the City “staying in our lane and just dealing with our own issues.” He was also hopeful that by giving notice in advance, the Region could increase its 2025 budget for the dedicated St. Catharines outreach workers,
The Council heard from a number of related delegations on the report. Representatives from the Downtown business community were supportive of funding being solely dedicated to the encampment cleanup efforts. Another delegate, Reverend Karen Orlandi, of Downtown’s Silver Spire United Church, struck a different tone.
While she recognized that the issues were primarily under the jurisdiction of the Region and that the City was within their purview to reallocate budgeted funds, she expressed the view that both services were crucial, especially in the downtown:
“It is important to recognize that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. The implementation of the NASO teams has been phenomenal for the City and the people it serves. Without NASO teams on the ground, we would be in a far worse position with numbers of folks experiencing homelessness and their related issues.”
The Reverend added that increased removal and demolition of encampments only creates animosity and greater challenges for those individuals affected. She concluded by reminding Council that behind the issues of homelessness are “real people”.
The Council approved the staff recommendation, with only Councillor Caleb Ratzlaff (Ward 4 - St. Patrick's) voting against. Ratzlaff, who’s ward includes Downtown, was concerned that once the City stops funding the additional three dedicated St. Catharines outreach workers, there would be no guarantee that the Region would continue the funding. While Councillor Joe Kushner (Ward 2 - St. Andrew’s) voted in favour of the staff recommendation, he acknowledged that the result would not be a long-term answer to the issues.
Welland
Two days after Mayor Siscoe provided his justification for signing the letter with his 11 colleagues, Welland Mayor Frank Campion released a “Mayor’s Message” indicating that he had written a letter to the Premier calling on the Province to invoke the NWC.
Like other mayors supporting the use of the clause, Campion pointed to encampments and mental health and addiction in public spaces becoming significant issues, with “existing legal parameters” hindering the municipality’s ability to deal with “unauthorized” encampments. As per his message, Mayor Campion is hopeful that a Provincial invocation of the NWC would “empower Welland to enact temporary by-laws that prioritize the health and safety of all residents while ensuring responsible and dignified support for those experiencing homelessness.”
Despite having already sent his support to the Premier, the Mayor has forwarded a Notice of Motion for Welland Council to consider. The motion is anticipated to be on the November 26th agenda.
The Mayor’s message also noted the new shelter set to open in Welland by the end of the year.
At their August 13th meeting, Welland City Council approved a lease agreement with Niagara Regional Housing to use City-owned land at 851 Ontario Road for a temporary, 50-room, modular-unit emergency shelter facility that in the words of the related staff report at the time, would shift individuals away from encampments to proper shelter.
While the matter of social housing is under the Regional municipality’s jurisdiction, in February of this year, understanding a need in the community and concerns of the homeless braving the elements, Welland Council unanimously approved $52,150 to offset costs incurred by Holy Trinity Anglican Church for an emergency overnight shelter during the winter months. It was considered a stopgap measure while the Region considered a purpose-built facility for South Niagara.
Council’s approval in August was not unanimous. Although all councillors expressed that there was a need for such a shelter in Welland, the Ward 5 councillors, where the shelter is to be located, expressed opposition. Councillor Graham Speck was critical that the municipality did not have a say in the site selection and Councillor Claudette Richard noted “furious” resident opposition within the ward.
In light of the concerns expressed, a subsequent media release by the City of Welland noted:
“The siting of this shelter is compliant with local zoning and bylaws and does not require an additional public meeting for approval. It is important to understand that seeking further community approval for the siting of a shelter, which is otherwise already permitted under existing zoning rules, has been found to be contrary to the Ontario Human Rights Code, which seeks to prevent discrimination as to where people can live.”
Niagara Falls
The November 12th Niagara Falls City Council agenda had a number of motions related to the homelessness, mental health and addictions crisis. Correspondences from the Niagara Region and the City of Cambridge were related to the OBCM’s ‘Solve the Crisis’ efforts from mid-October, predating the Premier’s challenge and the thirteen mayors advocating for the use of the NWC. Mayor Jim Diodati, however, had a more recently drafted Notice of Motion calling on the Premier to invoke the clause “to give authorities and police more power to break up homeless encampments and force more people into mandatory drug and mental health treatment.”
Diodati’s motion, entitled Strengthening Existing System of Mandatory Mental Health Care, echoed many of the talking points and requests previously articulated by the OBCM caucus and the letter by the thirteen mayors. Where the Mayor’s motion deviated was in the presence of two “Whereas” clauses used to support the request.
One of the clauses noted that “the chronically homeless population in the Niagara Region is approximately 647 people, just more than 0.1 percent of the populus (sic), causing a disproportionate burden on families in our community”, seemingly inferring that any suppression of Charter rights was only affecting a very small group. The clause that followed and ended the recitations claimed, with some hyperbole, “every neighbourhood in our community has been affected, many businesses have moved, and residents face daily ongoing challenges.”
While other mayors have unilaterally sent a letter to the Premier, Mayor Diodati noted he preferred the team approach and was, therefore, seeking Council’s support prior to sending anything to the Province.
Councillor Victor Pietraneglo was the first to speak to the Mayor’s motion. He sought clarity on the necessity of using the NWC. Noting the Waterloo case, he inquired as to whether there were adequate shelter spaces to house the homeless in the municipality.
Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Jason Burgess declared that there were adequate beds available and even implied that no one had ever been turned away from the Region’s shelter on Summer Street in Niagara Falls. (At the September St. Catharines Council meeting, Adrienne Jugley, Commissioner, Community Services at the Niagara Region, who has since retired, indicated that shelters were at about 96 percent occupancy but due to the desire to house individuals there are often times when the facilities are “above capacity” with extra space made to avoid individuals from being unsheltered. She also explained that there are individuals that could be temporarily or permanently banned from shelters for a variety of reasons and who could be sleeping outdoors, regardless of shelter capacity at any given time.)
The issue of the Summer Street shelter has not been without controversy. An April City Council meeting witnessed a packed Council Chambers related to a delegation from residents in the vicinity of the shelter. A litany of concerns related to the shelter were offered, including safety and security of both commercial and residential properties, fights, trespass, break and enters, open drug use and increased litter, especially drug-related paraphernalia.
While a spokesperson for the Summer Street neighbours recognized the essential service provided by the homeless shelter, she questioned the lack of public consultation, whether the property was appropriately zoned for the use and the lack of firm answers from municipal and Regional officials on how the facility came to be at the location.
CAO Burgess noted the human rights decision and explained that a Zoning By-law amendment, which would have allowed for formal notification of the neighbours, was not necessary when the “government is using the property for the community good”.
In speaking to his motion at the most recent meeting, Mayor Diodati noted that the municipality was spending “a lot of our by-law time cleaning up encampments.” Like St. Catharines, Niagara Falls City staff had reported to Council on the City’s homelessness costs in October. The Niagara Falls report, according to staff, took an admittedly more “conservative approach” than the one in St. Catharines.
Staff estimated that the municipality spent $529,000 in 2023 related to homelessness, with approximately $300,000 spent halfway through 2024. Staff did admit, however, that 70 percent of the costs were related to labour, costs that the municipality would have incurred regardless of the homelessness crisis and that the municipality had not had to call in additional staff or pay overtime to deal with the issues.
The only Niagara Falls councillor to express concerns with the request to ask the Premier to use the NWC, was Councillor Lori Lococo. She argued that use of the clause was a “slippery slope” taking away people’s constitutional rights for up to five years. She noted that the Canadian Civil Liberties Association had come out in opposition to the move and that AMO, representing 444 of the Province’s municipalities, had just released a policy update advocating for “real solutions”, while making no reference to the need for the NWC. She also expressed her concerns over mandatory drug and mental health treatment and how it would affect current resources.
Councillor Lococo concluded her initial remarks quoting from a homeless professional who wanted to “remain anonymous because of repercussions” that what was necessary was more appropriate supports and resources for the vulnerable and more affordable housing.
The Mayor challenged the Councillor to provide her solution to people refusing help. Lococo attempted to respond, indicating that more resources for outreach efforts such as NASO would build greater trust, resulting in more of the homeless population seeking assistance. The Mayor interrupted the Councillor claiming she was not answering his question.
Councillor Lococo continued questioning the efficacy of Council deciding on the motion without hearing from frontline experts. Diodati dismissed the suggestion, indicating that he had done his research and consulted with many experts. He went on to argue:
“What’s happening now is not working. I agree with what Mayor Siscoe said. They are setting up encampments next to schools, churches and people’s backyards. Are we just going to let it go? I don’t think so. Time for a little bit of tough love.”
The Mayor’s motion was approved, with only Councillor Lococo opposed.
Postscript
Despite his challenge and the letter from the thirteen Big City Mayors, Premier Ford has not taken any specific steps in invoking the NWC or introducing other legislation. The same day as the Niagara Falls Council meeting, Ford was in Oro-Medonte for announcement and took a press question on where would the homeless go if he used the NWC to circumvent the Waterloo decision and would the homeless be placed in mental hospitals against their will.
The Premier, who sarcastically thanked the reporter for his “accusation”, indicated that no one would be put in mental hospitals against their will. He said that his government had “funded the homeless like never seen before” and that his government would be finding “proper shelter” for the homeless.
Ford did not directly address any of the OBMC requests but indicated that his PC government would be supporting any municipality that goes to court on the issue. He called the Waterloo decision a “wrong decision” and then suggested that it would take an encampment outside a judge’s house for the “right decision” to occur.
Meanwhile in Niagara, the Niagara Poverty Reduction Network (NPRN) went on record supporting the position of the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness that being homeless is not a crime:
“NPRN does not support the use of the notwithstanding clause to dismantle encampments by force; as was suggested by Premier Ford and recently supported by Niagara Falls, Welland, and St. Catharines mayors. Using police force and the threat of jail to clear encampments is neither compassionate nor effective. Houselessness is an emergency, and we should respond to it as we would to any disaster—with care, shelter, and support, not punishment.”
While the officials in Niagara Falls may be preaching tough love and adequate shelter spaces for the homeless, St. Catharines Mayor Mat Siscoe, at Town Hall meeting in the Grantham Ward last week, indicated, with the winter coming, he will be advocating for a temporary overnight shelter during the Region’s current budget deliberations.
On November 18th, a group of more than 40 Ontario municipal and regional councillors, representing 23 communities, signed a letter in opposition to the letter signed by the thirteen Big City Mayors. From the letter:
“As individual Councillors in our respective municipalities, we know that Ontario municipalities are facing a humanitarian crisis that is affecting all of us. We see it every day in our communities. But no municipality should be above the law, and we are sworn to uphold democracy and human rights as Councillors.”
The councillors’ letter questions the unilateral actions of the various mayors, arguing that the respective councils should have been consulted and debate should have occurred before any decision was made.
The letter advocates for evidence-based solutions to the homeless crisis and is calling for the rescinding of the request to the Premier to use the notwithstanding clause “to ensure that the democratic will of our constituents and human rights are respected.”
Local signatories to the letter are St. Catharines Councillors, Greg Miller (Ward 1 - Merritton) and Caleb Ratzlaff, Niagara Falls Councillor Lori Lococo and Regional Councillor Haley Bateman (St. Catharines).
Dean Iorfida is a Local Journalism Initiative Reporter based at The Pointer.
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