Etobicoke residents hold rally over concerns about proposed homeless shelter in their area

Sarah Petz · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 30, 2025 4:55 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

A projected stateless structure that's acceptable to beryllium built successful the Etobicoke country is getting pushback from immoderate residents who accidental they're acrophobic astir its proximity to a seniors' residence and 2 schools. 

Dozens of radical came retired to a protestation Sunday day astatine 66 Third St., the shelter's projected location, to amusement their beardown absorption to the project. 

The structure was 1 of six that were announced past December arsenic portion of the city's efforts to conscionable an unprecedented request for structure spaces. In summation to impermanent housing, the installation volition besides supply entree to different services specified arsenic harm simplification and intelligence wellness supports, and counsellors to assistance clients make imperishable lodging plans. 

Some residents who attended the protestation Sunday said they weren't opposed to a structure successful their neighbourhood, but had concerns astir the location. 

Dan Perdue said it disquieted him that the structure would beryllium built crossed the thoroughfare from a schoolhouse and a elder centre nearby. 

"To person thing close crossed the thoroughfare from kids conscionable seems brainsick to maine to person like, however is simply a elder who's going to parkland close present successful an alleyway going to consciousness precocious astatine nighttime coming successful with their car and parking determination with a structure here?," helium said. 

Perdue said helium felt the metropolis hadn't adequately consulted with assemblage members earlier choosing the location. 

"If they would conscionable speech to us, we could place sites that would beryllium acold amended for this community, that would enactment the radical they privation to help, that would beryllium capable to springiness acold amended services than this peculiar tract would give."

Keira Marshall lives connected the thoroughfare wherever the structure is acceptable to beryllium built. 

"None of america were truly made alert that this is happening until it was happening," she said. 

She said she didn't deliberation it was due to person the structure located connected a tiny residential thoroughfare and had concerns arsenic a genitor that the installation would besides beryllium providing harm simplification services. 

"If they're being provided with these things successful shelters, wherever is it going to beryllium similar it's going to beryllium connected the streets, right?"

Some supporters of the projected structure besides attended the rally

"We are present to amusement our enactment and besides propulsion backmost connected the communicative that unhoused folks are inherently dangerous. It's not true," said Karen-Luz Sison, a coorganizer with the Etobicoke-Lakeshore Shelter Support Coalition.

"Most unhoused folks conscionable privation to unrecorded their lives and rebuild and heal."

Location underserved, metropolis says 

Loretta Ramadhin with Toronto Shelter and Support Services told CBC Toronto successful an email that the determination was chosen to conscionable the needs of susceptible residents successful an country that is underserved by homelessness services. 

"We cognize that sites that are intent built for stateless services supply amended outcomes — not conscionable for the individuals utilizing the site, but for the broader communities they are located in."

The structure volition not run a supervised depletion site, she said. 

Ramadhin said the metropolis understands that country residents whitethorn person questions and instrumentality this input seriously. 

"The champion outcomes travel erstwhile neighbours are partners successful these captious projects."

A 2021 city study connected homelessness successful Toronto recovered Etobicoke-York had a greater stock of outdoor homelessness than different parts of the city. 

Leslie Gash, enforcement manager of the Toronto Shelter Network, said the findings from that report, arsenic good arsenic the beingness of respective encampments successful the area, bespeak it could usage much services for radical who are unhoused. 

Gash said it's a misconception that stateless shelters bring issues to neighbourhoods. 

"They're each implicit the metropolis and determination are a batch of them, you would not needfully adjacent cognize determination was a structure there," she said. 

"They're being operated good and they're being bully neighbours to the community." 

Etobicoke-Lakeshore Coun. Amber Morley said she's heard input from residents connected "both sides of this issue." 

"We bash admit the mode that our assemblage has mobilized. There's been a batch of coalescing astir this contented 1 mode oregon the other. And I deliberation it's important that the assemblage comes together," she told CBC Toronto successful an interrogation Saturday.

A municipality hallway astir the projected structure was held successful February. Morley said a second, virtual municipality hallway is scheduled for April to springiness radical different accidental to stock their feedback.