Toronto relies on 'outdated,' inconsistent protocol for responding to encampments: Ombudsman
CBC
City of Toronto staff rely on an outdated and inconsistent approach when it comes to dealing with unhoused people in public parks, according to an investigation into the city's controversial clearing of encampments last year.
Toronto Ombudsman Kwame Addo released an interim report on Thursday that found a key protocol intended to guide staff in their interactions and treatment of people living in encampments has not been formally updated since 2005.
Addo similarly found that the city's Encampment Office, created in the summer of 2020, is under-resourced and lacks a focused mandate.
"Clearing encampments is extremely disruptive and in some cases traumatizing to the people living in them. The city owes a particularly high duty of fairness to those residents, who are among the most vulnerable in Toronto," the report said.
"The city's response to encampments, including its enforcement action, must be done in a consistent and coordinated way, following a process that is well-established, transparent, and understood by all — city staff and encampment residents alike."
The report ultimately includes eight recommendations to help the city develop a "clearer, transparent, and consistent" way to deal with encampments. The city said as of July 13 there are 121 known encampments.
The Ombudsman's office began its investigation in September 2021, after fielding more than 50 complaints from the public about how encampments in Trinity Bellwoods Park, Lamport Stadium Park, and Alexandra Park were cleared earlier that summer.
The high-profile incidents included violent standoffs between Toronto police and encampment supporters who tried to stop city staff from evicting those living in the parks. Dozens of people were arrested as the city moved in.
The scenes drew widespread condemnation from some members of the public and advocacy groups.
"We heard broad concerns that the city's treatment of people living in encampments had eroded the public's trust in their municipal government, and we saw evidence that the city's actions have hurt its work with community organizations on other important city initiatives," Addo said in the report.
"Community groups told us that the clearings have increased the vulnerability, isolation, and trauma of people who have lived in encampments."
The partial report also notes that investigators heard from members of the public who supported the city's actions and also expressed concerns about their ability to use public parks where encampments had formed.
Thursday's interim report has a narrow focus on several elements of how the city approaches those living in encampments. Addo said a wider report will be tabled to city council as soon as possible, but that he felt it was important to provide an update on the sweeping investigation as the city continues to clear encampments in other parks.
One of the key parts of the interim report is a document called the Interdepartmental Service Protocol for Homeless People Camping in Public Spaces, or IDP. The IDP was first adopted in 2005 and is described as a "primary document outlining [the city's] approach to responding to encampments."
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running Game
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing Game
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic Game
Edgar Spence keeps a folded bundle of receipts for meal expenses his family has had to cover out-of-pocket since they were forced out of their home community by wildfires in northern Manitoba.
A man accused in a series of north-central Edmonton arsons is guilty of starting fires that damaged or destroyed several homes in 2020 and 2021, a judge ruled Thursday.
Residents of Ward 8 in Hamilton are likely to be back at the polls once again after city councillors voted Wednesday to hold a byelection there to replace former councillor John-Paul Danko, who was recently elected as a member of parliament.
Work on Windsor's large Banwell Road interchange and corridor construction projects is currently on hold after Butler's gartersnakes were discovered.
Etched on a poster board the size of her body, Mary McPherson held up a pencil-drawn portrait of Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
One of the largest old elm trees in Toronto — possibly in all of southern Ontario — is on its last legs.
It's graduation week for many University of Guelph students, but it's a particularly special day for one 68-year-old whose walk across the convocation stage was 49 years in the making.
Scientists on Prince Edward Island have created a new warning system to help Maritime farmers avoid a costly disease called fusarium head blight, which can decrease grain yields while contaminating the crop with toxins.
An N.W.T. deputy minister says the territorial government is hoping to use federal housing money to clear derelict homes from communities.
WARNING: This article contains graphic details, references sexual assault and may affect those who have experienced sexual violence or know someone impacted by it.
Monique Gordon's second-floor apartment in Rexdale is sweltering hot all year-round — even in the winter.
As Fanshawe works toward reducing its staff by more than a third, the college announced Thursday that 40 jobs have been eliminated through downsizing, early retirements and unfilled vacant positions.