In My Opinion: If we keep changing the rules, Toronto will never solve its homelessness crisis – Beach Metro Community News

By AMARACHI AMADIKE

I’ve heard much discourse about the proposed 80-bed homeless shelter at 2535 Gerrard St. E. It’s got Mayor Olivia Chow exchanging fighting words with councillors about confidentiality agreements, further emphasizing the disconnect between City Hall and the streets of Toronto.

Much of the discourse surrounding 2535 Gerrard St. E. is in general support of the idea of more shelters in Toronto. However, people don’t want the shelter built at this location as “there aren’t enough amenities”.

In one article, out a resident spoke about how they “supported building shelters, but in places with more transit options and social services than exist near the Gerrard Street site”.

Over the years, I’ve been part of many discussions where this same sentiment is echoed.

But, the fact that this particular discussion has become as fiery as it’s become prior to information about whether the site will be a transitional shelter with health services, case management, and other social supports, leads me to believe that the problem was never about amenities.

“I just don’t want homeless people around my neighbourhood,” said nobody.

But, I always wish we’d just be honest so that Toronto Council can make quicker decisions, rather than hiding true feelings within the shadows of altruism.

“The transit isn’t good enough to have a shelter here,” we say instead.

But the site is located a 15 to 20 minute walk or 13-minute bus ride from Victoria Park Station. I don’t know how much easier the city needs to make it to get around before a shelter gets royal assent from the community.

If you speak to people experiencing homelessness – individuals who’ve sustained hardships that our sheltered minds can’t phantom – they’ll most likely tell you that they wouldn’t mind having to walk 15 minutes to the nearest train station in exchange for a warm place to sleep every night as well as access to assistance from trained professionals.

“The site is close to a daycare,” we say.

OK, now the conversation is mimicking that of the safe consumption sites. But I’m almost certain that this scenario is entirely different. This isn’t a case of drug deals being made or people smoking crack on residential doorways. This is a case of people looking for somewhere to sleep.

If we keep changing the rules as to where a shelter can or can’t be created, frankly, we will never meet the needs of a city with as many homeless people as Toronto.

There is no perfect location.

We often bring up the idea of sending the homeless population to a different community better equipped to handle their needs. But rarely, if ever, do we entertain the idea of bringing some of those missing amenities into our communities in order to create an environment that better nurtures the needs of those experiencing homelessness.

Because if we do that and Toronto Council actually gets the necessary funds from mom and dad, then the homeless people get to stay in our community. And that’s a problem.

The real crisis is that we all know that there’s a homelessness crisis in our city but nobody is willing to look at it.

We want to scold councillors for not doing enough for the homeless population, but the moment they take action – like creating a shelter – we tell them that we don’t feel safe about the migration of the new guests into our communities.

We criticize from afar but don’t want to look at the problem directly.

But the reality is this: On an average night this year, there are 12,200 people in Toronto experiencing homelessness.

Perhaps this statistic isn’t as jarring as numbers experienced in other major cities like New York City which has 350,000 homeless with a total population almost three times the size of Toronto’s, but considering it is a 14 per cent increase from the 10,700 homeless people reported in 2023 – an increase that has resulted in Toronto’s shelter system turning away hundreds of people seeking beds nightly – it’s safe to say we shouldn’t wait for things to reach a seemingly helpless point before taking strong action.

Rather than getting in the way of the councillors who are in fact on the side of actually helping – there are a few– referring shelter proposals to areas with an already established pro-homeless infrastructure, we need to invite councillors to build more of these much needed “amenities” in our neighbourhoods.

Afterall, it isn’t as though the city couldn’t do with more amenities.