Fairer Rules for Park Encampment Clearings

Summary#

Toronto City Council adopted Ombudsman Toronto’s report on how the City cleared park encampments in 2021 and directed staff to carry out the report’s recommendations. The goal is to make future encampment work fairer, more transparent, and more focused on people’s needs and rights. The City administration says it accepts all recommendations and will implement them.

Key changes:

• Create a properly resourced, interdivisional group led by human‑services expertise to plan and coordinate encampment work.
• Prioritize supports for encampment residents, including clear plans for physical and mental health services if a clearing is necessary.
• Build a clear engagement strategy with encampment residents (with specific approaches for Indigenous, Black, racialized, and other equity‑deserving groups) and repair relationships with community groups.
• Improve public communication: give dated notices, use plain language, offer a dedicated contact, and use multiple channels to inform residents.
• Publish general information on the City’s encampment clearing process and set up a way for the public to file and track complaints.
• Review and make public the “Dufferin Grove Park” housing‑first approach and use its lessons as a best practice.

What it means for you#

• People living in encampments

  • You should get clearer, earlier information about any planned clearing, including an actual compliance date and what to expect.
  • There will be a dedicated City contact to ask questions or raise concerns.
  • If a clearing happens, the City would plan for on‑site access to health and mental health supports and provide plain‑language information on options.
  • The City intends to engage with you in a more consistent, respectful way and seek your feedback.

• Indigenous communities and other equity‑deserving groups

  • The City will design engagement strategies that reflect cultural practices, trauma‑informed care, and unique rights and needs.
  • Outreach and supports would be tailored to social and health realities identified in the report.

• Community groups and outreach workers

  • The City plans to repair strained relationships and work more transparently.
  • Roles of Streets to Homes and Parks Ambassadors will be clarified.
  • A new interdivisional group will coordinate work across divisions and seek input earlier.

• Nearby residents and park users

  • The City will publish more information about how encampments are handled and how to submit complaints.
  • Clearer timelines and notices could reduce uncertainty about when and how parks will be restored.

• Municipal staff

  • A formal, senior‑led working group will coordinate encampment planning.
  • Outdated protocols are to be updated; divisions’ roles and mandates will be clarified.
  • Operations should place more weight on health, mental health, and human‑rights‑based engagement.

• Timing

  • The City committed to update the Ombudsman on implementation progress (initially by June 30, 2023, and then quarterly).

Expenses#

No specific cost estimate is provided. The cover report says tabling the Ombudsman’s report has no financial impact, but costs to implement the recommendations are not detailed.

Potential cost areas (no estimates provided):

• Added staffing and coordination for the interdivisional working group.
• Expanded outreach, engagement, and communications (plain‑language materials, multi‑channel updates, dedicated contact point).
• On‑site health and mental health supports when clearings occur.
• Program reviews, training, and updates to protocols.
• Evaluating and scaling elements of the Dufferin Grove Park model.

Proponents' View#

• The Ombudsman’s findings indicate the City’s 2021 approach emphasized enforcement and speed over individual needs, causing unfairness and harm. The recommendations appear intended to restore fairness, transparency, and accountability.
• A human‑rights‑based, housing‑first approach with meaningful engagement could improve safety, dignity, and outcomes for people living outdoors.
• Clearer public information, dated notices, and a complaints process could reduce confusion and stress for residents and the general public.
• The Dufferin Grove Park initiative showed better results when the City brought comprehensive services to the park, built trust over time, and focused on housing—supporters may see this as a practical model to replicate.
• The City administration supports and accepts all recommendations.
• The Toronto Alliance to End Homelessness supports the report and highlights:
  • Scaling up and funding the Dufferin Grove approach (housing‑first, on‑site daily supports, strengthened Streets to Homes work).
  • Establishing a strong interdivisional encampment working group led by human‑rights and homelessness expertise.

Opponents' View#

• Some service providers noted the report does not recommend pausing encampment evictions; they urged Council to add a stay on evictions. It is unclear from available material whether Council amended the item to include this.
• Members of the public previously raised health, safety, and access concerns about large encampments (fires, overdoses, unusable amenities, pests). A possible concern is whether added engagement steps could slow clearings and prolong these issues.
• It is unclear whether the City will dedicate enough resources to fully implement health, mental health, and housing‑focused supports at scale.
• The report calls for more transparency and communication; if not executed well, confusion could persist about timing, roles, and enforcement.