City of Hamilton’s ongoing commitments to unhoused individuals, encampments

Hello Ward 8 Neighbours,

As encampments become more prevalent across the municipality, the City of Hamilton has been investing in ongoing efforts to house and support residents who find themselves houseless and to respond to the needs of encampment residents while being mindful of community safety.

For more details, please continue reading below…

The City of Hamilton has shared with the Ward 8 office the current initiatives it is undertaking to address the housing crisis:

Housing Investments/Efforts

• The City of Hamilton is spending 30% more on housing residents in need in 2023 than in 2022, and 55% more than five years ago. The City’s tax operating budget passed on March 29, 2023 allocates $70.1 million towards housing and related services and is an investment the City shares with the provincial and federal governments.
• The additional 30% or $16.4 million, is being invested across the housing continuum and includes:
  • An additional $4 million for affordable housing initiatives to help enable non-profit development and acquisition of affordable housing.
  • A $1.1 million top-up in rent supplements and operating subsidies to social housing providers to keep affordable units on the market.
  • $550,000 in cost-of-living adjustments for community shelters funded through additional provincial investments in the Homelessness Prevention Program.
  • $2.6 million to enhance staffing and services at the YWCA Transitional Living Program, a 65-bed facility that offers transitional housing for up to two years for women.
• In April 2023, City Council passed a motion to create the City’s Housing Sustainability and Investment Roadmap, a “whole of Hamilton” approach to tackle the affordable housing crisis.  

Encampment update from the City of Hamilton

Encampment Response

• The City is committed to facilitating a comprehensive, whole-of-community, housing-led approach to encampment response. As a first step, Housing Focused Street Outreach staff engage with people living within an encampment to better understand their needs and connect them with internal and community supports.
• In keeping with the City’s housing-led approach, Housing-focused Street Outreach staff have attended the Whitehern Historic House/City Hall area an average of 4-5 times each week since March 1.
• Municipal Law Enforcement staff first attended the encampment on May 4 to issue Voluntary Compliance Notices in response to health and safety concerns.
• Given the increasing number and nature of health and safety concerns that persist at the location, Municipal Law Enforcement staff with assistance from the Hamilton Police Service attended the site again on May 25 to issue Notices of Trespass, which are effective immediately.
• Encampments continue to be a complex and multi-faceted issue and the result of several interconnected challenges, including a lack of affordable housing, subsidized housing, and housing with supports in the community, as well as low social assistance rates, an increased cost of living, substance use, and real or perceived barriers to accessing emergency shelters or other services within the homelessness serving system.
• The City appreciates that the Encampment Coordination Response is not a solution to homelessness, but rather to ensure coordinated response and leadership across Housing, Parks, and Municipal Law Enforcement that facilitates appropriate and timely response to constituent concerns related the clean-up of city spaces and parks, and to a humane approach to supporting unsheltered individuals.

In addition to the above, the City of Hamilton will undertake a public engagement process during the month of June, where the community will be invited and encouraged to weigh in on new approaches to assist unsheltered individuals. More details to follow, and the Ward 8 office will share those once received.

Questions or concerns?

If you have any questions or concerns, you can contact our office here.