Ending Chronic Homelessness

[danbrotherston]

The "tent city" downtown is going to be removed soon, with the RoW offering no solutions other than to force them to a new location: https://www.therecord.com/news/waterloo-...y-now.html

The tent city is not a solution, either. From the article, region staff have offered some shelter (and maybe other housing?) options to the people but they have found few takers.

I suspect that most of the people living in this encampment are not newly homeless, but the location, facilities (water and washrooms) and the presence of other people have attracted people and it has kept growing.

I don't know whether a housing-first policy would work for these people, but we don't have that policy, or enough available income-geared housing anyway. Probably the best (and most feasiblr) option would be additional tiny homes (if a location can be found for those), but I don't know what percentage of the rough sleepers would accept living in a tiny home. Probably most, but surely not all.

I agree with basically everything here.

But I don't know why you are unsure about a homes (homes is a better word, housing is insufficient) first policy wouldn't work.

Nobody in their right mind would ever choose to live in a tent at Victoria than Weber than a home.

The problem is that the "solutions" offered like shelters are often worse than a tent.

But you're right, we don't have that policy. As for more tiny homes, it's a stopgap, but an improvement. Of course, I don't see it as particularly feasible either. I don't recall, does the existing ABTC even have a permanent location yet?