Charlottetown mayor pushes back after province moves to keep shelter, outreach centre on Park Street
Province intervened after city council voted against letting operations stay at current location
Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown says the city hasn't ruled out a legal challenge after the province stepped in to ensure the emergency overnight shelter and Community Outreach Centre would continue operating at its current location — despite the city's opposition.
On Tuesday night, Charlottetown council rejected the province's request for a zoning change to cover the operations on Park Street in Charlottetown. Approving it would have allowed both services to remain in the area indefinitely, although the province had previously insisted the location would be temporary.
Two days later, Housing Minister Steven Myers announced regulatory amendments to create a special planning area taking in a large plot of land that includes the Park Street property on which the shelter and outreach centre are located.
Brown told CBC's Island Morning on Friday that he wants the Federation of P.E.I. Municipalities to step in as the province's move has set a precedent.
"This is not just about Charlottetown. This is about the province and all the municipalities that make this island a great place to live, work, play and raise a family," he said.
"I think the City of Charlottetown needs to have that discussion, and the Federation of Prince Edward Island Municipalities has to look at this as maybe a court challenge."
'I find that's very disrespecting'
Brown also pushed back at criticism from Myers following council's vote.
"Through all the negotiations we've had with the city and all the conversations we've had with the city, it turned out to be a whole lot of lies, so it's not really worth engaging them any further," Myers told CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin.
"We have to do what we can to protect vulnerable people … They had a chance to do the right thing, and they chose not to take it. They took the coward's way out, and I fixed it for them."
In Friday's interview, Brown described Myers' comments as a "sandbox fight" and took issue with the minister's choice of words.
"When I look at, you know, using words like 'coward' and 'lies,' I find that's very disrespecting to a body of elected officials," Brown said.
"I don't want to go down that road where he's going to throw sand in my face and I'm going to throw it back. I'm not going there. I want to take the high road. But we have to be careful with our language."
Brown said Myers's language was directed not just at elected officials but also at the city's professional planners, who have years of experience and are responsible for making development decisions that work best for the city.
The city's decision was not about opposing the province's efforts to address housing and social needs, Brown said, adding that city planners have determined the Park Street location was not a "permissible use" under established community plans and good planning principles.
Alternative location
When asked where vulnerable populations should go if the emergency shelter and outreach centre were to be relocated, Brown pointed to the new mental health and addictions campus in Charlottetown, which is still a work in progress.
"It's an appropriate site, but that site is still in development. So we are trying to work with the province and again, we will work with the province," he said.
Meanwhile, the province has said it already bought some houses in the Park Street area. Brown, however, said that buying out a neighbourhood is not the solution.
"That's not how public policy should work. Public policy should work to create and strengthen communities, and that's what we are responsible to do as a municipal government," he said.
With files from Island Morning