Waterloo Region’s encampment court ruling sends 'very strong message' to cities across the province
A precedent-setting ruling in the Region of Waterloo could have a lasting impact on cities across Ontario, some legal and housing advocates say.
Last week a judge denied the region’s court bid for an injunction to have the homeless encampment removed at the corner of Victoria Street North and Weber Street West in Kitchener.
The ruling noted that the region did not have adequate shelter spaces for its homeless population.
Justice M. Valente also said evicting residents would violate their charter rights to life, liberty and security.
Sam Trosow, an associate professor in the Faculty of Law at Western University said the ruling sends a “very strong message” and it will have “serious repercussions” for municipalities across the province.
“The lesson here for the region, and other municipalities, is before you try to clear anymore encampments, get a sense of how many people are there, get a sense of what their particular needs are,” he said. “Don’t rush in with enforcement efforts.”
Instead, Trosow said municipalities should first look to what local supports and shelter spaces are available before moving forward with an eviction.
Homeless advocate Daphna Nussbaum, who works with the Peel Alliance to End Homelessness, said the ruling is a “wake up call” to other regions.
“Municipalities are going to be very careful moving forward about how they’re working with their encampment community,” she told CTV News.
Nussbaum said encampments are increasingly popping up in areas like in Peel Region, Mississauga and Brampton.
“It’s not like you can just tell someone to leave and then they have absolutely nowhere to go, so they’re just going to find themselves outside anyway. I think it will be really interesting how communities look at their encampment situations, how they address them, whether or not they will apply more of an urgency to find solutions, and hopefully innovative solutions. I mean, we don’t need more shelters, we need housing,” Nussbaum said.
The Region of Waterloo does have the option to appeal the court ruling, however Trosow strongly recommends it doesn’t.
“I don’t think there are any errors of law here,” he explained. “Rather than waste resources on an appeal, which is not likely to succeed, municipalities and regions should be expending their efforts on increasing the number of [shelter] placements.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.