Toronto council butts heads over where to put new shelters

Toronto city council is butting heads over the authority city staff have to choose where shelters get built and when local residents should be consulted. 

At issue at council Thursday was a motion requesting amendments to the zoning bylaw to build slightly larger buildings at six new shelter sites that could be repurposed as affordable housing in the future.

That's what took up most of council's discussion on Thursday, which became heated over the decision to delegate the power to choose locations to city staff — a decision originally greenlit by councillors in 2017.

"Process is very important. This has fallen off the rails because of process," said Coun. James Pasternak in council. His York Centre riding would house one of the new shelters at 1220 Wilson Ave. 

Instead of seeking public approval in advance, staff plan to hold consultations to help integrate the sites into communities after a location has been selected but prior to construction beginning.

Pasternak and a few other councillors said local representatives and residents should be consulted earlier. 

Nearly 6,000 residents signed a petition against the Wilson Avenue site, citing safety concerns in the community, Pasternak told council. The site was also opposed by provincial and federal elected officials that represented the area.

Pasternak suggested staff should create a short list of potential sites that would then be selected in collaboration with local councillors. 

But city staff and other councillors say the delegated authority was introduced to de-politicize the selection of sites and to speed up the response to Toronto's housing crisis. 

There are 15,000 people who are homeless in Toronto, said Mayor Olivia Chow at the meeting, and the city only has capacity to house 12,000 of them. 

Staff noted 17 public consultations were held for all six sites, some of which brought in over 300 people to share concerns and ideas for the shelters.

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Coun. Lily Cheng said she supports her ward's new shelter, but the site selection process should include earlier consultation with residents to encourage involvement and to build trust. 

"It hurts what's already hurting in our city, which is trust. People don't trust our city," she said.

The city's planning and housing committee heard over five hours of deputation from residents for and against the sites, Coun. Brad Bradford (Beaches-East York) said at council. 

That shows "the public has more to say," Bradford said, and that further and earlier discussions were needed for the six sites and any others in the future. 

The process to create shelter sites is complex and it's difficult to satisfy everybody when it comes to addressing shelters and perceived safety issues, said Coun. Mike Colle at the meeting. 

He said it's natural for people to be worried about change in their communities and that concerns from apprehensive residents should be respected. 

In regards to potential safety concerns from shelters in the area, staff said each location will be accountable for what happens inside and outside the facility. The shelters would also be staffed around the clock and partner with police and crisis services to manage any issues. 

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Corinna Prior, acting manager of community planning, said 13 more shelters are in the process of being selected and built as part of the city's 10-year plan.

She said councillors in other wards are welcome to come to staff with ideas and potential locations for much-needed shelter sites. 

But she noted that consultations with the community and ward councillors were most successful after a site was selected to help create a plan to seamlessly integrate the shelters into the neighbourhood.

Staff said hundreds of locations across the city are considered when selecting a site, with particular focus on space that is large enough, accessibility to transit and easy access to health-care facilities. 

They said the city's 10 year plan to create 20 shelters is in part to replace expensive shelter hotels established during the COVID-19 pandemic, which can cost about $300 a day per person.

Council passed motions on Thursday to amend the zoning bylaws for all six sites, to add parking and other features at specific shelters, and to create a leadership team to navigate consultations with local officials and residents.