People experiencing homelessness in Thunder Bay, Ont., say designated encampments could help
CBC
Gary Hooper says this is the first time he's been homeless and it hasn't been easy.
Living in a tent since moving to Thunder Bay, Ont., two months ago, he considers himself lucky, having warm blankets at night and services he can access during the day. But there are challenges, like not being able to store fresh food and worrying about people stealing his belongings.
"Everybody's been camping," he said. "They wanna sleep in the tents. Me, I have no choice right now."
Hooper has been in recovery from addiction for nine months. He has been volunteering at People Advocating for Change Through Empowerment (PACE), a drop-in centre on the city's south side, and loves to cook — on Thursday, he made bannock and soup for lunch.
Hooper is just one of a growing number of people experiencing homelessness in the northwestern Ontario city.
Last summer, the number of people known to be sleeping outside nearly tripled compared to the previous year. City council is considering the feasibility of supported or designated encampments, and has directed staff to report back in June about potential sites and costs.
Hooper prefers to keep to himself, but said supported encampments with washrooms, supplies and security patrols are a good idea.
On Friday, Ontario Housing Minister Paul Calandra announced more than $9 million for 52 new transitional housing units in the city. Service providers say they're hopeful about the much-needed spaces, but concerns remain about how many people will still be in the encampments this summer.
Longtime friends Shawn Pratt of Thunder Bay and Virginia Rose MacLaurin of Fort William First Nation say they aren't sure where they'd go if PACE — where they can get coffee, use the computer and watch TV — wasn't open.
MacLaurin has been homeless since her house burned down more than three years ago.
Pratt was homeless for a year before going to jail, and when he was released six months ago, he had nowhere to stay.
"I've been constantly looking for a place since then and they ask you, 'Have you ever been in trouble?' and you tell them the truth and then they just shun you away," Pratt said.
Pratt, who has been in recovery from addiction for nearly three years, is currently staying at an overnight shelter but doesn't sleep well. His phone was stolen, which meant he lost the numbers of people he was contacting about housing.
"I'll most likely be in tent city this year again."
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
A suspended Moncton structural engineer faces more lawsuits alleging design flaws in buildings that require repair.
Sajjade Tugano has come a long way since he first set foot in Chibougamau, six hours north of Quebec City, in the depths of winter in November 2021.
A national mentor-based hockey organization that helps marginalized youth through the sport is paying tribute to one of its members and youngest coaches.
After months of asking the City of Saskatoon to do more to solve its homelessness crisis, advocate David Fineday took to the stand at city council Tuesday.
A community organization wants to breathe new life into a historic building in Regina.
Some Prince County residents are walking away with more answers after attending Tuesday night's public information session in Albany, P.E.I., on the Wejipek Wind Project.
After just a few months of using vape detectors in a couple of bathrooms, a B.C. high school principal says it's reduced vape use in those areas to basically zero.
Burlington MP Karina Gould gets boost from local young people after entering Liberal leadership race
A day after entering the Liberal leadership race, Burlington, Ont., MP and government House leader Karina Gould was cheered at a campaign launch party by local residents — including young people expressing hope the 37-year-old politician will represent their voices.
Anold Mulaisho was born intersex and wonders where they fit in, in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order for the United States to recognize only two sexes, male and female.
WARNING: This story contains references to suicide.
Subway service is down on Line 1 between Sheppard West and Lawrence West due to a broken power rail, the TTC said Wednesday morning.
A long-term care home in Toronto's Yorkville neighbourhood has cleared one more hurdle to add desperately needed beds to its property, a move that's been praised by housing advocates but opposed by locals concerned about the impact on the neighbourhood.
A Charlottetown resident is calling on the P.E.I. government to do more to protect homeowners after reading about a recent oil spill very similar to one on his Montague property 20 years ago, which he says ruined him financially.
WARNING: This story includes details of abuse.
Two years after Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly declared she was taking the unprecedented step of moving to confiscate millions of dollars from a sanctioned Russian oligarch with assets in Canada, the government has not actually begun the court process to forfeit the money, let alone to hand it over to Ukrainian reconstruction — and it may never happen.
Alberta business and oilpatch leaders are returning home from Washington this week after the U.S. presidential inauguration festivities — and gritting their teeth after a roller-coaster of emotions.
Youth workers in Toronto's Jane and Finch area are flipping the script on negative stereotypes about their communities with a new fundraising campaign that offers anti-bias training in exchange for donations to bolster their programming.
In a sudden move that came late Tuesday evening, city officials rolled out cots and temporarily opened a warm building in east London as frigid temperatures continued.