Recommendations to support and respond to ongoing homeless encampments are going before Chatham-Kent Council next week.
On Monday night, CK Director of Operations and Housing Services Josh Myers is asking council members to approve the proposed Encampment Response Strategy; authorization to amend the current sole source agreement with Reach Out Chatham-Kent (R.O.C.K) to increase housing-focused outreach services to seven days per week ending March 31, 2025; and authorization to approve additional sanitation, garbage removal, and when necessary enforcement and security services.
Myers noted R.O.C.K currently provides outreach services including water and other basic necessities three days per week and additional services like portable washrooms, garbage removal, and when necessary, temporary security options are needed to reduce the harms of encampments and provide enforcement when encampments are dismantled.
The total cost of increased support and services is not to exceed $85,000, according to a report authored by Myers.
Under the proposed rules, encampments shall not be located near municipal playgrounds, water parks, splash pads, beaches, or sports fields, elementary schools, childcare facilities, assisted living facilities, or other health or social service facility providing support or care services to youth or vulnerable populations including shelters, as well as private properties, bridges, and sidewalks.
Myers' report said clear rules are necessary because the number of homeless encampments on CK municipal land is growing and recent court decisions have established that human rights afforded by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms prevent municipalities from prohibiting or clearing encampments on municipal land if there are insufficient available and accessible housing solutions for those displaced when encampments are dismantled.
"Staff have heard from members of the general public and individuals living in encampments that the larger concern surrounding encampments is not homelessness but the conditions, crime and social disorder, that continue to occur in some encampments," wrote Myers.
Myers noted rules around municipal spaces that are not appropriate for encampment locations are required along with balancing conflicting uses and impacts.
"Administration views this approach as the best way to strike a challenging balance between protecting human rights and responding to community concerns regarding safety and well-being," he noted.
Myers said this approach is recommended because it accomplishes clearer guidelines on conditions and behaviours that are acceptable in encampments; balances all citizens’ rights to shelter, privacy and reasonable enjoyment of their homes and businesses; addresses acts of criminality versus criminalizing homelessness; can connect encampment locations with community agencies, maintaining contact with clients until better housing is secured; and a lot more.
Myers said he understands that if the recommended guidelines are approved, encampments will be spread out into municipal spaces that have not historically had them.
"It is clear that no one is in support of the status quo. Many residents expressed an understanding that people need help but that this does not change their very real feelings of fear and concern. The social disorder that is occurring on a regular basis is a problem that the Municipality cannot solve alone and requires significant policy changes across a number of sectors that Municipal governments do not control or influence," said Myers.
He emphasized the municipality will continue to raise the encampment issue to the appropriate channels and will continue to seek partnerships to bring critical programming and policy changes that are required to change "the current reality that all Canadian communities are facing."
The municipality reported 39 people who are currently living in encampments were consulted before the guidelines were drawn. They said unaffordable rent was the single biggest factor for their situation; some said they prefer encampments because of the sense of community while others prefer to camp alone; and many are there because they have nowhere else to go.
According to municipal officials, a third of respondents stated they do not know what they would do if their current encampment got shut down, while the same amount explained they would plan to set up elsewhere. Others explained that they would suffer greatly.
Nearly three-quarters explained they would use a designated area for camping in Chatham-Kent, if there was one, and it would provide peace of mind because they wouldn't have to constantly worry about being moved.