Kitchener encampment to be cleared April 1 following regional approval
Posted Jan 9, 2026 02:44:33 PM.
Last Updated Jan 9, 2026 03:02:21 PM.
Regional councillors approved amendments to a bylaw that would see a Kitchener encampment cleared on April 1.
The decision comes after a public input meeting earlier in the week, where 24 delegates shared their thoughts and opinions around the encampment located at 100 Victoria St.
Many of those delegates in support of the continuation of the encampment voiced their displeasure with councillors around the process and its future, something Councillor Colleen James looked to address.
“There’s a narrative out there that we don’t care. We’re trying our best to do what is right and make the right decision,” James stated. “Something that stuck with me on Wednesday was the notion that there is no empathy. From my understanding, typically for any type of bylaw, empathy is not part of a bylaw.”
The amendments included delaying the clearing of the encampment from its original date of Dec. 31 to Apr. 1, as well as removing fines associated with trespassing on the site thereafter and creating a transition process to aid in finding housing options for those impacted residents.
Multiple councillors stated throughout the meeting just how difficult the process has been and how hard it will be to find a true solution to the issues around the encampment and homelessness in the region.
“The options are status quo or do better,” said Councillor Sue Foxton. “I believe in a hand-up, not a hand-out, but how to achieve that, no one seems to have the magic formula.”
While those talks continued during the meeting, Councillor Pam Wolf acknowledged that much of the bylaw and those discussions could be rendered moot depending on the future decisions of the Ontario Supreme Court of Justice.
“I do believe that this amendment, if passed, will have little effect on the outcome of the court decision,” said Wolf. “I think we’ve been told by many sources that we need a place of last resort, and that’s the only thing that’s going to satisfy the court.”
The vote on the bylaw amendments passed by a vote of 11-4, with councillors Natasha Salonen, Jan Liggett, Karen Redman, and Dorothy McCabe voting against.
However, the talk amongst councillors didn’t stop there.
Discussions around possibility for a regional safe-tenting protocol
Councillor Wolf brought up the possibility of a camping or safe-tenting protocol for the Region of Waterloo, pointing to other areas, including London, Guelph, Hamilton, and Peel Region, that have instituted similar bylaws.
She said that an option for tenting in the region is important for those who have fallen into the hardest of times, saying many aren’t able or choose not to use motels or other temporary housing options.
“No one is saying that an encampment is a good place for people to live, but the reality is, it’s a place of last resort,” Wolf said. “If there isn’t a place for someone to go, other than an encampment or a piece of land to put up a tent or curl up on, what are we saying? It is a human right to be able to exist, and this is what a place of last resort is.”
While some councillors agreed with the statements, others, including Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic, spoke against the possibility of a safe-tenting bylaw. He specifically took issue with some of the phrasing that Wolf used in her comments.
“To suggest that, somehow, not supporting this is not acknowledging or recognizing the human right to existence by some of us, is most unfortunate and is not the level of discourse that’s healthy for a debate like this.”
Other councillors, including Cambridge Mayor Liggett, said that a safe-tenting bylaw would only keep the issues they’ve seen in those encampments ongoing, saying it would just push the problem to other areas.
“It opens the door for more and more, and more,” Liggett said. “I think it’s going to be similar things to do with mental health and drug addiction across this country; we all reach for that shiny object, thinking that it’s going to be the solution to our problems, instead of actually hunkering down and fixing what’s causing these things.”
Ultimately, the vote to move forward with researching and developing a possible safe-tenting protocol split councillors right down the middle, tying in an 8-8 vote.
Those who voted in favour included councillors Sandy Shants, Wolf, Colleen James, Foxton, Matt Rodrigues, Joe Gowing, Joe Nowak, and Chantal Huinink.
Those who voted against included councillors Salonen, Redman, Joe Erb, Doug Craig, Michael Harris, Liggett, McCabe, and Vrbanovic.
Eyes will begin turning to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, which is set to continue its case against the Region of Waterloo regarding the encampment and its site-specific bylaw.
Those proceedings are expected to continue Feb. 5, 6, and 27.
