Encampments correspondence

November

From Vivienne: I have been curious about how our park compares with others reasonably close by. I prepared a table of 45 parks for comparison. Out of those parks 26 have been checked for tents. I am attaching the table both in word and pdf form. Basically Dufferin Grove Park has the largest encampment at 40 tents (approximately, the number does change) with the second largest encampment at 26 tents at Alexandria Park. After this Bartlett Parkette has three, Trinity Bellwoods has 2 and then a handful have 1 and the rest zero. That is out of the 26 parks. Many of these parks have easy access to shops and transit. I have listed the full 45 parks so if anyone can check the others out that would be helpful. An interesting observation was that I didn't see any tents in schools that had large playgrounds/sports fields close to them. St. Mary's School doesn't have its own play ground or sports field, so in essence the park is it. So why do the St. Mary's students have to compete with tents in the park where all other schools I have seen do not? I would like to hear from our Councillor as to why the encampment in Dufferin Grove Park has been allowed to expand to become the largest in the city covering approximately two thirds of our park now.

What struck home for me in the Star article that Jill sent out was the point that Mayor Chow has invested more in "long term affordability than short term capacity". Long term affordability is a noble goal, but before us is the result of this policy in terms of a lack of desperately needed shelter/accommodation RIGHT NOW for those living in tents and lack of political will to focus on and prioritize that immediate issue. This also applies to Premier Ford.

Uploads:ResearchLibrary/TableofparksandtentsNov23.pdf

From Jill: If those who have chosen Dufferin Grove as a preferred location to live, rather than on the street, should we not support them as much as possible, rather than pushing them to another park. They are already struggling with so much compared to those of us with homes, and some of those homes larger than we need and with their own greenspace. Rather than focussing on the minimal inconvenience of having less park area, we should divert our energies into the provision of temporary but decent living accomodations and advocating for the resolution to our housing crisis, the main crime that forces people to live in parks in the first place. Let’s look at and try to solve this problem rather than trying to send it to another neighbourhood. Can we look beyond our own self-interests and care for those who are struggling and need care?

From City Councillor Alejandra Bravo

Thank you to all of the residents who have contacted my office about the encampment at Dufferin Grove. We are in continual contact with the City’s Encampment Office, and I am now writing with a new update following information we received this week.

My team and I have consistently advocated for more services and supports for Dufferin Grove. In addition to the existing daily Streets to Homes outreach visits, I now have confirmation that City security teams will be increasing their presence at Dufferin Grove to multiple visits per day, with the exploration of increasing to a full-time security presence. This is something I have repeatedly asked for as this presence can help to ensure the safety of all park users including encampment residents and the staff who are on site to serve their needs, and to monitor for fire safety issues or the need for paramedic response. I have also spoken to the City’s Encampment Office about the importance of ensuring that St. Mary’s Catholic Academy, which often uses the soccer field area in the north end of the park, can continue to have full access to this area for students.

A great deal of work has been underway over the past six months to respond to the encampment at Dufferin Grove: since July, 83 encampments have been resolved, meaning that the person residing there was either connected to shelter and housing or opted to relocate. Over 5,370 kg of debris have been removed from the park over the past year. Outreach workers have been at the park every day, 7 days a week, since the summer, working with clients and building relationships to help people transition into other options.

The following numbers are constantly changing, so please keep in mind that what follows is a snapshot of a moment in time: Dufferin Grove continues to be one of the largest encampments in the city, with 43 tent structures (although the number of people at any given time is fewer in number). Other encampments that are similar in size include ones currently at Alexandra Park and Trinity Square. Previously, an encampment at Allan Gardens was approximately twice the size. In total, there are currently 478 encampments located across 121 different Toronto park areas.

While this demonstrates that park encampments are not limited to Davenport, I understand the challenges of limited park space in our community. I know it has been a difficult period for all to navigate sharing a small amount of outdoor green space, and this is a challenge both for people who live near Dufferin Grove Park and for people who are staying in an encampment and struggling to find shelter and housing options. I am glad to share that regular Parks & Recreation programming and community events have proceeded uninterrupted throughout the summer and fall at Dufferin Grove and continue to do so.

The City of Toronto’s response to encampments is a human-rights approach that focuses on helping connect people living outdoors connect to shelter and housing. My team and I will continue to work with City staff to explore all options to support people at Dufferin Grove to transition to shelter and housing, and I will continue to push for the creation of more shelter spaces in our city, which are desperately needed. Recently in the Toronto Star I wrote about my family’s own experience staying in a shelter, and how critical shelters are as a first step for many towards a permanent home.

From Vivienne: Councillor, we have read this same response from you time and time again. The fact that so much support has been and is still needed at the encampment, that 5370 kg of debris has been removed and that there is consideration now of having a full-time security presence in the park emphasizes that the encampment situation in Dufferin Grove Park is out of control, yet there is still no word as to when this situation will be rectified. You seem to pat yourself on the back stating that 83 encampments have been resolved, however those tents have been replaced over and over again. Unless the sign that prevents overnight camping in the park is returned the encampment situation in Dufferin Grove park will never be resolved.

It appears to me that in fact you have already reached that conclusion and that you have offered up Dufferin Grove Park as a permanent encampment. You note two other encampments that are similar in size. Alexandria Park is one of them and has 26 tents, I don't know about Trinity Square. So, your post confirms that Dufferin Grove Park is quite likely the largest encampment in the whole city, not just close by. Yet, you have given us no indication whatsoever of a possible resolution of the situation. It is an outrageous and shameful position both for the occupants of the tents and for the local community which you represent and serve.

December

From Vivienne: I read that the encampment on Clarence Square that reached as many as 29 tents (reminder that we have 43? in Dufferin Grove Park) has been completely cleared as of today. I read reports that everyone has been housed and all the debris cleared. This comes close on the heels of local residents holding a press conference towards the end of October. I saw a sign that called their Councillor MIA - Missing In Action. I think this would definitely apply to our Councillor. I would echo the call for our Councillor and Mayor Chow to meet with local residents to hear their concerns and then hopefully take some action.

From John Noyes: Dear Councillor Bravo, thank you for your ongoing support for Toronto's homeless. At the same time, I would like you to acknowledge the impossible position you have imposed upon your constituents. I think I probably speak for most of us when I say that we want to support our unhoused neighbours, but we also need to have our public park be a park again. It's not fair that your policies have pitted our needs as citizens against our concerns for our fellow citizens. Each and every one of us live with this conflict of interests, and it is your job to find a solution.

Living in the park is winter is a miserable prospect. I've slept in a tent in the park in summer, and it is almost impossible to get a good night's sleep there, what with the constant traffic on Dufferin Street, and the bright lights all over the park. Add to that the cold, rain and snow, and this solution starts to look like a non-solution. Also, the community is dismayed at having lost so much of our valuable, meager public space in an attempt to make good the failings of all levels of government in dealing with Toronto's homelessness. So it seems urgent for the community to hear your short and medium term plans for our park.

Please explain how you envision the coming months. How and when will you be moving the poor cold tent dwellers into safe, warm, and reliable housing?

What is the timeline? What will happen to those who cannot tolerate the coming cold? Of those who survive the winter, how many tents do you plan to have standing in the spring? And what is the timeline for moving them into safe housing?

March

From Vivienne: Thank you Abi so much for expressing so very eloquently and heartfelt what I too feel about what has happened to our park. I too no longer have any faith that I might have had in our Councillor's promises. We were indeed told that as of February 1 no more tents would be pitched in our park. There were 4 new tents pitched over the weekend with Security Officers watching. When asked by a neighbour if they were supposed to prevent this happening, they said they had been told not to take any action but just to report.

Before the 4 new tents there were 23 tents with just 12 occupants ... these figures from Councillor Bravo's office. So I guess 11 of those tents were empty or used to hold people's belongings but not taken down. As well there are mounds of stuff outside the front of tents on the hill that have been there all winter. We were told at the meeting with Councillor Bravo that the city would let the residents know that they would move those belongings to city storage. That has obviously not happened either.

We were told that any number of resources would be used to help move the tent occupants into housing, help them with resumes etc etc. They are obviously not doing a very successful job.

We were also told we would have 24 hour security. They are also obviously not doing a very good job either. In addition to NOT preventing new tents being pitched, they also seem to be impervious to loud noise and partying late at night. A neighbour wrote to let me know that they had been kept awake by loud noises and partying until after 1:30 a.m. Tuesday while security slept in their car just a few feet away. This was not a one off situation, I have heard it from others even a distance from the park. I have also heard that the police will not take action when they hear a complaint is about our park. We would not be allowed to behave this way in the park, it is currently a lawless situation. Our park is being held hostage because of lack of action from our Councillor.

Now COST! Can you imagine how much it must be costing to have 24 hour security (2 security guards), all the extra resources focused on the park, twice weekly visits from Toronto Fire, Park Ambassador presence, Daily Outreach visits, extra garbage pickups and so on. It must be a fortune that surely could be allocated towards housing and other desperate needs in the city. All to support 12 tent occupants. Surely housing could have been found for them by now. We were told that was the goal. It is an incredible waste of city money that we have all paid towards with no benefits showing for the tent residents or the neighbourhood.

What about all the families and residents in and around our densely populated neighbourhood who have lost their green space? Many live in basements, small apartments, rooms and so on without any access to green space. They too have rights and should be supported. The park used to be a jewel of the neighbourhood, in fact of the city. It was written about as an example as to how parks should be used and enjoyed by everyone. Right now it is a shanty town with a few occupants. On cold November 23 last year there were 42 tents. Imagine nearly twice the number we currently have. With the weather turning milder we might well be looking at that number again, if not more, unless immediate action is taken.