Neighbours of A Better Tent City's temporary home respond to relocation
The temporary accommodations of A Better Tent City in Kitchener is getting mixed reactions from those that live nearby.
On Thursday, it was announced that the 50 residents, most who were previously homeless, would be moving to a space on Battler Road typically used for snow storage.
The temporary space was provided by the city after ABTC had to leave their original home on the Lot 42 site following the sale of the property.
They had hope to relocate to a property on Breslau, but received push back from nearby residents and was ultimately not approved.
"I'm happy that the City of Kitchener stepped up and helped us so we don't have to be out on the streets," said volunteer Nadine Green.
On Saturday, residents around the Battler Road location made a special delivery of 20 pizzas and a new fridge to the new residents.
"We had about four or five different community members donate together and then we went to a local pickup pizzeria," said resident Charlotte Middleton. "We're only a few paycheques away from sometimes being in this position ourselves."
Most items in ABTC's storage room are from the food bank and private donations.
In an email to CTV News, one nearby resident says they weren't notified of the move and that "the safety of our children, businesses, our homes, and reputation must be addressed."
The site is on the border of the ward city councilor Kelly Galloway-Sealock represents, and she says she's heard mixed reaction about the move, with some residents wanting to donate and other raising concerns.
"They hadn't been welcomed in other areas and weren't necessarily welcomed here as well," said Middleton "We wanted to make sure that us welcoming them was louder than the unwelcoming messages they might've received."
Galloway-Sealock adds that staff, organizers, and community members are working with the group to find a new site before the end of October.
"Give me, give us a chance and come by to say hello," said Green. "You might like us."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.