‘They won’t disappear’: Residents of encampment react to new bylaw

Residents of the 100 Victoria St. encampment are making their voices heard after the Region of Waterloo passed a bylaw that will remove them from the encampment by Dec. 1.

Regional staff created a site-specific bylaw that would move the roughly 35 residents out of the encampment near the Weber Street intersection and into supportive housing or temporary motels. It also asks for an additional $800,000 to help with that move.

Many of the roughly 35 residents of the encampment heard of the new bylaw through word-of-mouth, and some have yet to learn about the bylaw that will displace them from what some of the residents there call “tent city.”

The move is to make way for the construction of the Kitchener Central Transit Hub. Metrolinx requires the space to be cleared by March 2026, and before work can begin, regional staff need to perform a site assessment.

Residents allege that since the notice of the bylaw, security on site has changed their pattern and now block the entrance to the encampment, alleging that security staff were previously located on the periphery of the property.

“It makes me feel quite vulnerable to the point where I need to figure out a way to stop this bylaw from getting passed and fight it in a court of law,” said Aaron, a man who has been in and out of the encampment for some time.

Regional staff are connecting with the Ontario Superior Court for direction on how a decision from Justice M.J. Valente could affect their newly created bylaw.

In 2023, Justice Valente ruled that the region’s attempts to clear the 100 Victoria St. encampment were in breach of its residents’ Charter rights because of a lack of available shelter space.

The Region of Waterloo claims to have adequately increased the amount of available shelter space since that time.

“We should have been warned prior to this trailer out front here getting set up and all five dumpsters being brought in,” added Aaron, pointing to a large trailer at the front of the property. Residents said they’ve never seen the trailer being used, and are unsure what its purpose is.

Some people at the encampment believe that the region should have found places for it’s residents to live before putting the bylaw in place.

“Doing it the other way around clearly shows what their priorities are,” said Aaron, a friend of the people of the encampment who brings food and supplies.

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A large portion of the regional funding that will go to helping move people on to their next phase is set to be used for temporary motels. Eddie, a volunteer at the encampment, acknowledged that staying in a motel is better than living in a tent, but added that those who rely on the encampment have found a sense of security and continuity there.

“There is a kind of stability in being able to put your tent down and come back to your tent and know that you have a place that you won’t be asked to shove off of,” said Eddie.

Joe Mancini, Director, The Working Centre in Kitchener, told 570 NewsRadio that the supportive housing or temporary hotels might be the touchpoint some individuals need to break the cycle of homelessness.

“Just making them disappear is not going to fix the problem, especially because they won’t disappear, they’ll just become unhoused on King Street, or at City Hall, or at the park again, which the region also doesn’t want,” added Aaron, the friend of the encampment residents.

The region will spend the next six months intensifying its work at the encampment up until the Dec. 1 deadline.