The Metropolis of Hamilton says it has cleared greater than a dozen encampments from public property as of this week below a municipal bylaw, following the council’s repeal of a protocol that had permitted them.
In 2023, the town accredited an encampment protocol that allowed outside shelters so long as they adopted particular location tips — similar to distance necessities from some group amenities — and didn’t have a cluster of greater than 5 tents.
The protocol was a part of the town’s effort to handle encampments whereas supporting homeless individuals and committing to everlasting housing options, as charges of homelessness rose in Hamilton and throughout the province.
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The protocol was rescinded efficient March 6 after a council vote in January, and municipal legislation enforcement officers and Hamilton police have now begun imposing a metropolis bylaw that prohibits tenting in metropolis parks.
In a social media put up Thursday, the town mentioned that 16 encampments had been cleared from public property, and crews are “actively cleansing impacted areas” throughout the town.
The council movement in January had cited an Ontario Superior Court docket ruling final December that dismissed an software from 14 individuals who argued their Constitution rights had been violated after they had been evicted from encampments on Hamilton public property.
The Hamilton Group Authorized Clinic is representing the group and mentioned in a press launch Wednesday that it’s interesting the choice with the Court docket of Attraction for Ontario.
The clinic has mentioned it’s hopeful the enchantment can be heard this fall.
Hamilton’s transfer to clear encampments comes after Premier Doug Ford mentioned in December that he deliberate to go a legislation requiring encampments in public areas to be cleared, and introduce stronger trespass legal guidelines and fines.
A invoice his Progressive Conservative authorities launched in December didn’t go earlier than the provincial parliament was dissolved for a provincial election. The legislature is anticipated to reconvene in mid-April, at which level the invoice may very well be reintroduced.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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