Toronto clears almost encampments near children's areas, but critics say causes of homelessness remain
CBC
City staff have removed nearly all homeless encampments within 50 metres of schools, daycares and playgrounds in Toronto, a senior official says.
The clearing of 46 out of 47 encampments near facilities for children comes after councillors directed staff to make it a priority in November last year, according to Gordon Tanner, general manager of Toronto Shelter and Support Services.
There is only one encampment left in the city still within 50 metres of a school, daycare or playground, he added.
The reduction is "really a direct result of some investments we had through the 2025 budget to get more people on the street and connecting with people and offering them supports to come inside, but also a factor of seeing less demand from the number of refugee claimants," Tanner told reporters on Friday.
"That opens up space in our shelter system and allows us to bring more people inside."
Tanner said encampments were cleared after staff offered indoor shelter space to the unhoused people living in the encampments. More than 48 unhoused people were offered indoor space, he added.
"We resolve encampments. That's all about first talking to the people that are there, ensuring that we're doing our best to meet their needs with respect to shelter and housing," Tanner said.
"When their needs are resolved, then obviously, we remove the materials that are left behind in the encampment itself."
In a statement on Friday, the city said the removal happened between Nov. 13, 2025 and Jan. 9.
An encampment is defined by the city as "any tent or structure that encroaches on a city park for the purpose of living or occupying a space."
But not all residents agree the removal was the humane thing to do.
Mona Liddiard, a Toronto resident, said she recorded city staff using box cutters to cut up a tent in an encampment in Stanley G. Grizzle Park, near Danforth Avenue and Main Street.
"Being close to a playground, if people are worried about the safety of their children, I can understand that. I personally have never had a problem with anybody here. Everybody has always been quiet, calm, respectful," Liddiard said.
Liddiard said the solution is not as simple as offering a shelter bed.
Amanda Nahwegahbow, 38, is being remembered by her family as a vibrant and resilient woman who could light up any room.
As Nova Scotia bucks a national trend of declining rent prices, the province’s housing minister said he's hopeful that work to stimulate more construction will lead to improvements.
When the New Brunswick Health Council released its report this week on avoidable deaths in the province, one area stood out.
Almost once a month for almost a year, Kathleen Toman has left her home in Balsam Lake, Ont., for Mont-Tremblant, Que. This weekend, she’ll make the 500-kilometre trip again, meeting her ex-husband, Chris Toman, there.
A charity in Chase, B.C., has secured funding that it hopes will improve child-care services in the community by training new childhood educators.
Ontario is seeking feedback on a potential amendment to the Coroners Act that may replace mandatory inquests into jail deaths with coroner-led annual reviews.
Paul Myllyniemi takes the bus to work in Thunder Bay, Ont., every day — except when it doesn’t show up.
Residents in the Greater Toronto Area are digging themselves out and going back to their regular weekday schedules a day after a major snowstorm.
Commuters hoping to escape the cold by travelling on Line 6 will need to think again, as train service is down Friday morning.
Halim Rahim has lived in Canada for almost four years, but says he’s never experienced a winter like this.
For Lindsay Gillan, walking her dog, Daisy, twice a day in Charlottetown’s Victoria Park is a treasured routine that benefits both her physical and mental health.
Whitehorse city council has postponed its decision on an overhaul of its zoning bylaws that would, among other things, introduce short-term rental regulations in the city.
Prime Minister Mark Carney says he has reached a deal with China to allow tens of thousands of Chinese electric vehicles into the country in exchange for lower canola duties.