Homeless Left Without Support from Kitchener-Waterloo Region

As of 2024, the number of homeless people in the Waterloo region has doubled to 2371, with an increasing yearly growth rate of 28 percent since 2020 (1). This has become a larger concern as the homeless community itself outnumbers the amount of facilities able to support the homeless.

In 2021, with 1085 homeless people in the region, the City only had five shelters with about 200 beds to be used (2). In the last 4 years, three shelters have been added to support the homeless community, but this is not enough.

Supreme Court Ruling

The tent city at 100 Victoria St. was constructed by the homeless in 2021 as a haven. The region filed a complaint to the Superior Court of Justice requesting the eviction of the people living at the encampment.

The court ruled that the encampment did not violate the local bylaw and that evicting them would violate their Section 7 Rights to Life, Liberty, and Security (3). Also, due to the region’s lack of housing support for the homeless community, they cannot evict the homeless people inhabiting the public property.

Challenges to Homelessness

Currently, Canadian shelters are facing challenges resulting in overcrowding, underfunding, and inadequate services.

The Heart of the Homeless (HearTH) team interviewed Mary Anne Zuberick, a resident of A Better Tent City, who discussed her experience at a shelter as “violent” and “rude”. In shelters, Mary explained that the need for survival was high, “I found myself in three fights … I’m not a violent person even living on the streets”, but in shelters, this was her reality.

The public shelters in the Waterloo region are ineffective according to some who endured the process. With the increasing number of homeless members of the region, the need for a better housing strategy is urgent, now more than ever.