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September 27, 2002
Tent City Residents Get Offer From City
The 125 or so residents of Tent City who were forcibly evicted from their
homeless encampment on Tuesday morning have been offered a housing
re-location deal from the City of Toronto. The deal came after
considerable political pressure from TDRC, Tent City residents and many
allies and supporters.
When Home Depot moved against the homeless people at Tent City on
September 24, 2002, it was clear that neither Home Depot nor the City of
Toronto had any plans to assist the residents either on a short-term or
long-term basis. After a day of hard work, the city agreed to provide
temporary shelter in a nearby community centre, but that arrangement would
only hold for a couple of days. We kept up the pressure on the city.
On Wednesday afternoon, TDRC met with city officials to hear their plans
for a long-term solution. The city outlined plans to offer the residents
rent supplements from a recently announced provincial program and to
provide them with practical help in finding and maintaining their own
apartment.
On Thursday afternoon, the TDRC steering committee met to review details
of the city plan. It only applies to Tent City residents (the city calls
it a "pilot project" in order to prevent others from applying)
and we have some technical concerns about the plan. But, on balance, we
agreed that it was a good offer and would likely meet the needs of many or
most of the Tent City residents.
It will be up to individual residents to decide whether they will accept
the deal, but the initial response has been very positive. Many residents
are pretty excited about the possibility of moving into their own home
after the desperate conditions on the street.
TDRC is continuing to monitor this deal. We want to make sure that the
city follows through on its promises. And we want to make sure that those
Tent City residents who are unable or unwilling to accept the deal are
able to receive appropriate shelter and services.
And, of course, we are committed to a comprehensive strategy that allows
all homeless people to move into their own homes.
In the meantime, however, thanks (and congratulations) to everyone who
gave their time and other resources. Without your commitment, Tent City
residents would have been thrown off the site without a thought to their
future. We made important progress this week by forcing the city to take
up its responsibility.
- Michael Shapcott,
on behalf of the Steering Committee,
Toronto Disaster Relief Committee
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