There are more and more homeless people everywhere…. Why is that? How is this happening in Ontario, In Canada? What is going on?
We pay taxes that are supposed to go towards social services to help those who are struggling, whether it be in need of food, clothing, shelter, medical, psychological or addiction assistance/intervention.
So why is there such a homeless problem????? There shouldn’t be one right, if the taxes collected are being used correctly and waste is kept to a minimum… that’s common sense right? Clearly this isn’t happening in Toronto, in Vancouver and in other cities… The homeless crisis keeps getting more urgent…
Why can’t each town/city take care of their own homeless populations? Wouldn’t that be more sensible, then trying to group all of the homeless from one region, into one building, in one town?
Here’s what we think is happening…
- Impossible rents and mortgages
- Lack of low income housing… or even middle income at this point…
- Mass immigration versus Sustained immigration
- Government over-spending in area’s not related to the quality of life for Canadians.
- Biased Government, (it’s like they have blinders on, and can only see one agenda) beginning at the top and moving down through all levels of government.
We now see that the consequences of the policies of our government… are tricking down into our back, and in the case of this project into our front yards…👇
The Region of Durham purchased a building, finalizing the deal on 08/03/2023… The building had previously been purchased in January of 2023 by a private citizen for $8,000,000. In August, The Region paid $5, 700,000 more then the previous sale of the building in January. Price tag for the building paid by the Region $13,700,000, .. As of October 13 2023, due to renovations and clearance of mold and asbestos, the cost has now escalated to $21,000,000.
The building has the capacity to house 300 easily. It was previously a Nursing Home.
The building is to be used as “low barrier” homeless shelter: Low Barrier, means that anyone may access the shelter, including criminals, some of whom use the shelter system to hide.
There was no “FOR SALE” sign posted on the property, and there was no “APPLICATION HAS BEEN SUBMITTED FOR” sign placed on the property.
None of the residents or business’s within the area were informed or asked for any input before the project got the go ahead. We found out via an online news story.
The back of the building backs onto an established residential neighbourhood… it has a chain link fence which will be replaced by a 10 foot privacy fence (as said by the Region). There are at least 50 young children in the neighbourhood.
The building is located within walking distance from:
2 Day-Care centers: 2 Elementary schools: 1 high school: Car dealerships: 2 Senior apartment buildings: 1 long term care home: 1 apartment building: 1 mall: 1 large shopping center: numerous plaza’s (businesses) and residential neighbourhoods.
Those within the community, are compassionate and have empathy towards those who are experiencing life challenges, and understand that many homeless people are homeless not by choice. Everyone deserves a 2nd chance, no one should be denied life’s essentials… and the community is excited to see solutions being put forward to help those that need it.
However, the situation gets a little sticky, when the location of a “low barrier” shelter is within an area that is home to a mixture of ages and abilities… While, helping those who have fallen through the cracks, those who have worked hard to have what they have, cannot become the invisible population.
As someone said to me recently, “homeless people are just as good as you or I” this is absolutely true, and as noted previously, the community has no worries about helping anyone. However, and unfortunately, there are people who (homeless or not) cannot or will not live within the norms of society, whether it be due to mental health issues, or addiction… for some people, no amount of love, patience or caring can help them. (many of us know this through personal and heartbreaking experiences) Some of these people can turn aggressive in an instant, their behaviour is unpredictable… when you place person’s of this nature among an existing and established neighbourhood, the odds are that there is going to be trouble, as studies show, that communities with homeless shelter’s in established area’s have a 57% rise in crime…
And as we look at this particular situation, we know that it is a mistake to go ahead with this plan, especially without the correct studies done to make sure that the plan will work, without causing the community to go into a free fall….
Since the announcement in August there have been various meetings, some with residents and the few council members who are trying to help find a workable solution, and other meetings with the Town Mayor, councillors, Regional chair, councillors and staff involved in the “project” The meetings have not sat well with the community members… however, there is still an open dialogue going on, we just need the ones who are making all the decisions to actually listen to our concerns and take them seriously, so far the meetings seem to be an attempt to “educate” us as to why having this shelter in this location is a good idea.
The Region has committed to housing 45 clients this winter, the clients are from a list, (or so the community has been told) the community has also been told that they cannot turn anyone away during harsh weather conditions … Which begs the question, how many will actually be housed in the building in the first phase? It is well known that towns and cities phone around to each other looking for shelter space, will Toronto be sending their homeless to this Whitby shelter?
The residents and the community have safety concerns, which have yet to be completely addressed. Not only for the residents/community, but also for those who will be accessing the shelter.. If anyone is allowed access to the shelter, how can the clients who are just trying to get back on their feet, be protected from the clients who may have criminal or aggressive tendencies?
It’s a sensitive issue for sure, but one that is going to keep coming up over and over again, until a proper solution is found and implemented…
While the community, town and region continue to “discuss”, the community will be holding a Peaceful Protest against having a “low barrier” shelter in the area…
The community would like to express the need for any of the following, which the building could be used for:
- Women’s shelter:
- Single mothers and children shelter:
- Family shelter:
- Reverting the building back to a low cost seniors housing:
- A low cost day care center:
Saturday, October 14 2023:
Peaceful Protest
11 am to 1 pm:
Outside of 1635 Dundas Street E. Whitby
along Hwy 2 to the corner of Thickson rd and Hwy 2 (Dundas)
Serenity's Gift Cove (sgc) 