Tory defends dismantling of homeless encampments, says review of police action coming
![](https://toronto.citynews.ca/wp-content/blogs.dir/sites/10/2021/06/22/trinitybellwoodsencampment2-june22.jpg)
Posted June 23, 2021 2:08 pm.
Last Updated June 23, 2021 5:12 pm.
Toronto mayor John Tory says there will be a review of how the dismantling of homeless encampments at Trinity Bellwoods Park on Tuesday was handled, but he reiterated that he approved of the structures being taken down so people experiencing homelessness could be moved to “safer housing.”
Tory said the City and Police Services Board will review the raucous scene that saw officers clash with an agitated crowd of advocates and protesters.
Tory blamed the swelling crowd for drawing the large police presence.
“I don’t make decisions about where police go or how many police show up or how they conduct themselves when they are there … but I do think the response yesterday was in response to the circumstances that were created there, when hundreds of people showed up and (interfered) in the attempts the City was making to clean up the encampments,” Tory said during a news conference Wednesday morning.
“I support the fact that that operation was undertaken … because I think the intent was something that was meant to help the homeless people and was meant to try and achieve it in a peaceful way.”
Toronto police released a statement later Wednesday, saying officers were on site at 6 a.m. at the request of the City to “provide assistance” and “ensure public safety.”
More officers were called to the scene in response to the rapidly developing crowd.
“Our resources were adjusted throughout the day as more protestors travelled to the site for the purpose of interfering with the clearing of the encampment. Protestors out-numbered encampment residents, creating an increasingly unstable and unsafe environment for them and for City staff.
“Our goal is always a proportionate response, with an emphasis on de-escalation, in order to maintain the safety of everyone involved.”
Toronto police commented on the arrest of a journalist at the site, alleging that he climbed over a fence to access a prohibited area.
“He was arrested peacefully and without incident. He was removed from the area and released with no charges,” police said. “Media are not exempt from restrictions put in place for people’s safety in the same way they are not permitted to enter other police or crime scenes.
“Three people were arrested on serious criminal charges including weapons charges and assaulting a police officer,” police added. “We have also received a report from a member of the media who was surrounded by a group of protestors and assaulted by one with an object. This is under investigation.”
The City first issued trespass notices to people living in the two main encampment sites at the park on June 12, warning they could be evicted and face a $10,000 fine.
Tory said the City was trying to evict about 20 people Tuesday, all of whom were offered housing in city-funded hotel rooms. Twelve people accepted the offer, he said.
Tory stressed that the City has spent months trying to urge people at encampments to move indoors to shelters or hotels. Some continue to reject that offer, citing safety issues, but Tory says about 1,500 have accepted.
“We have spent months as a city, (and made) 20,000 visits to these encampments to convince people to come inside and take safer housing.”
Safety concerns at shelters
Recent data obtained by The Canadian Press shows a significant rise in violent incidents in Toronto’s shelter system over the last five years.
Encampments popped up throughout the city during the COVID-19 pandemic, as many fled the shelter system for fears of contracting the deadly virus.
But Tory believes the City can provide safer options for people experiencing homelessness.
“People should think about this for a minute, when we were offering … people a place in a hotel room, this is not somewhere where they are going to be at a place with some danger compared to a tent with propane tanks — and there have been numerous fires and health hazards,” he said.
Tory further says the City has added supports at hotels and shelters to help people dealing with mental illness or addiction issues.
“You cannot have unsafe, unhealthy, illegal encampments in public parks,” he added. “So, we are going to continue to try to work with people experiencing homelessness to convince them to take other housing options that are being offered and have been offered continually.”
![Homeless advocates at Trinity Bellwoods Park as the City of Toronto dismantles the homeless encampment.](https://toronto.citynews.ca/wp-content/blogs.dir/sites/10/2021/06/22/BELLWOODS-JUNE-22-1-1024x768.jpg)
Homeless advocates at Trinity Bellwoods Park as the City of Toronto dismantles the homeless encampment on June 22, 2021. CITYNEWS/Tony Fera
Tory maintained that there are enough housing spaces to accommodate all the people living in encampments and said if that wasn’t the case the City would not have moved to evict them.
“Those who are spreading the word that there is inadequate numbers of places to take, frankly all of the people residing in all the encampments, are spreading information that is false,” he said.
“I certainly would have spoken up in dissent about anything being done if I thought there wasn’t a place for every single one of those people.”
Tory said the City will continue to clear out encampments, many of which he claimed are empty tents and structures that pose a danger and interfere with the use of public parks by citizens.
“There does come a time when you have to take some action on these things,” he said. “But our overriding sense of compassion and wanting to help them remains our top priority.”
CityNews reached out to the City’s Shelter, Support, Housing and Administration (SSHA) for more information on the current status of Toronto’s shelter system:
Q: We’re looking for a little more information with regard to the amount of temporary housing and shelter space currently available to people experiencing homelessness in Toronto.
A: As part of the City’s response to COVID-19, the City of Toronto has opened more than 25 new temporary sites to create physical distancing in the shelter system and provide space for people to move indoors from encampments, providing approximately 2,600 spaces in these new temporary shelters and hotel programs.
- In addition, the City of Toronto and its partners operate 75 base shelters and 24-hour respite sites.
- These inside spaces come with meals, laundry and a bathroom, harm reduction, physical and mental health support and connection to a housing worker.
- From April 2020 to May 2021, almost 5,800 people experiencing homelessness moved from the shelter system into permanent housing
The City can activate additional space as needed.
Q: How many of those spaces were vacant as of yesterday?
A: Toronto’s shelter system provides more than 6,000 spaces to support those experiencing homelessness in Toronto. There was and remains space in the shelter system for all those at Trinity-Bellwoods and people continue to accept referrals to inside space today.
Overnight occupancy stats are available here: https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/data-research-maps/research-reports/housing-and-homelessness-research-and-reports/shelter-census/
Q: Can you also tell us the rules regarding how long those placed there are allowed to stay in those spaces and under what circumstances?
A: There is no prescribed limit to the length of time a client may stay in an emergency shelter. Lengths of stay will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Shelter staff will use the benchmark of ninety days as a trigger for initiating a reassessment of a client’s service plan. Access to shelter services are governed by the Toronto Shelter Standards: https://www.toronto.ca/community-people/community-partners/emergency-shelter-operators/toronto-shelter-standards/
You can learn more about the number of people experiencing chronic homelessness via the City’s shelter system flow data: https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/data-research-maps/research-reports/housing-and-homelessness-research-and-reports/shelter-system-flow-data/
As of May, there were 3,739 people experiencing chronic homelessness in Toronto.