Wayne Greer says he has been living in an encampment in Thunder Bay, Ont., for four months. During the day, he visits People Advocating for Change Through Empowerment (PACE), which runs a drop-in centre. Here, he's seen in PACE's back room, where staff keep clothes and supplies that are given out to clients.
As Thunder Bay, Ont.'s, city council continues to discuss how to handle homeless encampments, the city has maintained a human rights-based approach. Meanwhile, those living in the tents say the community's response to them hasn't always been empathetic. Here are what community advocates and those with lived experience say would help address the city's homelessness crisis.
This week, city council voted in favour of keeping existing guidelines around where encampments can be located. The debate revolved around whether they should be five or 10 metres from "any trail, sidewalk, or parking lot, or on or under any bridge, including pedestrian access points to such areas and structures." The five-metre guideline has been maintained.
When a report is received about a non-compliant encampment, Willianen said community organizations who have built trust with the unsheltered population work with them to do a planned relocation. "We've taken steps already to enhance our garbage collection efforts and we're taking even further enhancements exploring those right now," she said."It gives them a sense of responsibility, you know what I mean? They're working for their money, they're doing something, they're cleaning up the community," he said.
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